(Peru, Neb.). – Tim Crawford (Omaha) received the NAIA Champions of Character Award for the Peru State College (PSC) Bobcats at the Paducah Convention Center (COC) during the banquet to kick off the 2012 NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round for the Paducah Bracket. One member from each of the five teams in the tournament received a COC award.

Crawford and his Bobcat teammates finished 2-2 in the Paducah Bracket. 

Crawford earned the award based on the NAIA Champions of Character core values, which are integrity, respect, responsibility, sportsmanship and servant leadership.  He was the baseball representative for three years on the athletic department's Student Athlete Advisory Council and was a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.  Crawford participated in many community service-related projects.
NAIA's five core values follow with an explanation of each.

Integrity - Internal traits that guide behavior
Integrity is structural in nature. It is a combination of all inward traits that build upon one another to determine who you are. Just like a ship, the structural integrity of an individual depends upon the material used to build it and the people who guide its construction. Linked to moral character integrity might be described as an individual's inside identity.                                                                                             

Respect - Treating others the way you want to be treated.
Respect is social character in action as it is given and received in public. Respect is valuing the person that stands before you. In an athletic setting, the person standing before you could be the coach, a teammate, an opponent, an official or a spectator.

Responsibility - The social force that binds me to the group
Responsibility is a social contract among a group's members to act in a manner that leads to greater group success. All great teams throughout history have had one thing in common: Unity of purpose.

Sportsmanship - Following the rules, spirit, and etiquette of athletic competition
Sportsmanship demonstrates both internal and external character. Sportsmanship is both a product of internal traits such as fairness and external traits such as hospitality. Sportsmanship is following the rules of a contest and demonstrating a concern about the spirit and etiquette of how the contest is played or administered.

Servant leadership - Serving the greater good:
Servant leadership encourages individuals to serve others while staying focused on achieving results in line with the organization's values.  This core value demonstrates both internal and external character.  In an athletic setting, a team's chances for success are increased when its members become servant-leaders.  A team made up of servant-leaders trusts their coach to make the best decision for the team.  Whether you are the star of the team or the person that makes the star better each and every day in practice your role is important.  Understanding the role you play on the team and accepting that role demonstrates servant-leadership.

Crawford finished the season with an 8-3 record as one of the Bobcat pitchers.  He had an ERA of 4.77 in his 54.2 innings pitched.  With his eight wins, Crawford will find himself in the Bobcat baseball pitching single season records in a tie for third with five other hurlers.

A K-12 health and physical education major and coaching minor, Crawford will finish his coursework in the fall and student teach in the spring of 2013.