Recently, Peru State athletic director Wayne Albury announced that Cheyenne Birkle (Holden, Mo.) and Brandon Fenner (Charleston, Ark.) were selected as the Bobcat student-athletes of the month for November.
Birkle was selected as she was one of the Bobcat volleyball team’s top performers and recently earned all-conference recognition. Fenner was the top performer for the men’s cross country team for the season.
A 5-7 junior libero, Birkle was named recently to the Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart) Third Team. She played in all 60 sets of Peru State action this past season. During the year, Birkle had 263 digs which ranked 41st in the NAIA. She averaged 4.38 digs per set. In addition, Birkle had 21 assists, 15 service aces, and had a passing efficiency of 90.8%.
Once he was cleared for competition, Fenner was Peru State’s top male runner during the season. He was the Bobcats’ best finisher in the Heart Championships where he finished 85th in a time of 33.24.22 which was good for 67th in scoring purposes. He had a personal best time of 31:30:04 in the Mount Marty Invite. Fenner is also a member of the men’s basketball team where he had the game-winning shot in Peru State’s first home game.
In announcing his selections, Albury noted, “Cheyenne had a consistent season on the volleyball court and was rewarded for her efforts with her all-conference selection. Balancing two sports with totally different training regimens is tough, but Brandon did a nice job with both. Therefore, they are good selections as the November Athletes of the Month.”