Four Wake Co. student-athletes win scholarships

Raleigh Sports Club Scholarship recipients were Claire Fuscoe of Ravenscroft, Emily Hartman of Wake Forest High, Nick Grover of Heritage and Katarina Pibl, not pictured, of Grace Christian.
Raleigh Sports Club Scholarship recipients were Claire Fuscoe of Ravenscroft, Emily Hartman of Wake Forest High, Nick Grover of Heritage and Katarina Pibl, not pictured, of Grace Christian.
The Raleigh Sports Club has awarded four $2,000 scholarships to impressive Wake County student athletes Claire Fuscoe of Ravenscroft, Nick Glover of Heritage High, Emily Hartman of Wake Forest High and Katarina Pibl of Grace Christian.

Fuscoe, who was a key contributor to the Cross Country and Swimming teams at Ravenscroft, also excelled in the classroom, where she has 34 college credits, making her a sophomore in college when she enrolls at UNC-Chapel Hill in the fall.

Her coach, Leslie Payne, said Fuscoe is passionate, driven, self-disciplined and dedicated. Payne said everyday Fuscoe displays her contagious smile and enthusiasm for life. A well-rounded athlete and student, Fuscoe has also joyfully served developmentally challenged children in the community through Learning Together.

Perhaps her greatest athletic accomplishment came in the state cross-country championships where she earned All-State and helped the team to a one point victory for the title. In fact, she has been a key reason that her teams have won three state titles and one runner up title.

Her parents are John Fuscoe and Katherine Smith.

Grover, who ranks in the top three percent of his class, is coachable and great at decision making says his Heritage basketball coach Pat Kennedy.

For the past four years Grover, Kennedy said, has been the most hardworking and diligent student he has ever taught. “Nick thrives on self-discipline and has never missed a deadline,” Kennedy said. “He exudes confidence, yet, stays humble and hungry to learn more.”

Despite a rigorous academic schedule, Grover plays sports, is on the executive board of the Spirit Club, tutors other students, spearheads fundraising opportunities and is a school ambassador to welcome new students to the campus.

He has been accepted to five colleges but has not made his choice yet. His parents are Brian and Mary Grover.

Hartman, who maintains a 4.8 weighted GPA at Wake Forest High, is a conscientious, hard working, bright and fun-loving student who plays soccer for Coach Jeremiah Mattingly.

“She is always up for new challenges and thrives in all aspects of her life,” Mattingly said. “She is one of the most intelligent young ladies I have worked with. She is a true leader to the younger girls and often has a positive quote or activity to help with team bonding.”

Hartman is busy, hard-working and giving as she plays club soccer and high school soccer, volunteers at the Ronald McDonald House, with Special Olympics, takes part in other community and church activities, and she has a job.

She will attend UNC- Wilmington in the fall. Her parents are Rev. John Hartman and Laura Hartman.

Pibl, who could not attend the ceremony because she is participating in a mission trip to Costa Rica, is the valedictorian of her class yet she had time to excel in cross country, track and field, soccer and swimming at Grace Christian.

Her coaches say she has learned skills like dedication, sacrifice and perseverance that have helped her in the classroom and in relationships with others.

The captain of the soccer team, Pibl has endured the ceaseless and painful work necessary to come back from an ACL tear and then a meniscus tear. But her confidence was never shaken with these injuries and she has never considered giving up. Not only did Pibl not give up but she has worked her way back and has committed to play soccer for Emory University.

Her parents are Roman and Lisa Pibl.

Deran Coe, the Wake County Schools athletics director, praised each of the winners and said that athletes are actually more likely to succeed in the classroom. He noted that athletes in Wake County miss half as much school as non-athletes and that the drop out rate of athletes is just .6 percent compared 10.32 percent for non-athletes.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.