Bunch, Iorfido, Nemergut Recognized As Athletes of Year; Flynn Coach of Year
April 29, 2006

EDINBORO, PA – Edinboro University recognized its 2006 Senior Male and Female Athletes of the Year and Coach of the Year on Saturday, April 29 at the 25th Annual Hall of Fame Banquet. Wrestling coach Tim Flynn was honored as Edinboro’s Coach of the Year, while Shawn Bunch (Leavenworth, KS/Leavenworth) was selected the Sox Harrison Award winner as the Senior Male Athlete of the Year.

For the second time since the award was initiated in 1984, two honorees were selected for the Nancy Acker Award, recognizing the Senior Female Athlete of the Year. Callie Iorfido (Ambridge, PA/Ambridge) and Julie Nemergut (Youngstown, OH/South Range) shared the award. The only other time it occurred was 1992.

Flynn guided Edinboro to one of its most memorable wrestling campaigns since the school moved to Division I. The Fighting Scots placed eighth at the NCAA Division I Wrestling National Championships in Oklahoma City, OK. That marked the highest finish since the 1997 team placed sixth, and is tied for the third-highest finish since Edinboro moved up to Division I in 1986-87.

In addition, Edinboro finished the dual meet season as the only undefeated team in Division I with a perfect 12-0 record. The Fighting Scots were ranked 16th in the final USA Today/NWCA/ InterMat Division I Coaches Poll. Edinboro won the EWL dual meet crown for the fifth time in the last eight years, then went on to finish as the EWL Tournament champion for the fourth straight year and the eighth time in the last nine years.

Flynn was earlier recognized as the EWL Coach of the Year, marking the fourth time he has won the award. He was previously named Edinboro’s Coach of the Year in 2000. He finished his ninth season in charge of the Fighting Scots, and now has a 94-31-3 record. All told, the former Penn State All-American has led Edinboro to eight EWL championships and seven PSAC championships, with a total of 70 national qualifiers, 17 All-Americans, 22 EWL champions, and 33 PSAC champions.

Bunch concluded a brilliant career with a third place finish at 133 lbs. at Nationals. The senior is a two-time All-American who placed second at 133 lbs. at the 2005 Nationals. He completed this season with a 40-2 record, winning his first 16 matches before suffering a 6-4 overtime defeat to Buffalo’s Mark Budd, then running off 22 more wins in a row to advance to the 133 lb. semifinals. Bunch would drop a 9-2 decision to Chris Fleeger of Purdue, but the next morning he came back with an impressive showing, handing third-seeded Tom Clum of Wisconsin a 9-5 defeat in the consolation semifinals, then wrapping up third place with an 8-2 win over Minnesota’s Mack Reiter, the fourth seed.

Bunch becomes just the second wrestler in Edinboro history to post 40 wins in a season more than once, joining Matt King. He went 40-2, as well, as a junior. He finished first at the prestigious Las Vegas Invitational, the Southern Scuffle, the PSAC Championships, the Missouri Open, and the Eastern Michigan Open. He became just the fifth wrestler in EWL history to earn four EWL Tournament championships, and was recognized as the Outstanding Wrestler at the EWL Tournament and the PSAC Championships.

In addition to standing tied for sixth in season wins with 40, he departs in a tie for fourth place in career victories with a 132-24 career record. Bunch was a four-time national qualifier, qualifying as a freshman at 125 lbs. before heading to Nationals at 133 lbs. the next three times. In all, he posted a 13-6 record in four trips to Nationals.

Iorfido capped an outstanding career by being named to a pair of All-American teams. After being named to the Kodak/WBCA Division II Honorable Mention All-America Team, she was named to the Division II Bulletin honorable mention All-American Team. Iorfido became just the sixth Fighting Scot named to the Kodak/WBCA All-America Team, and the first since 1999-2000 when Jessica Rowe was named to the first team and Marin Hightower was an honorable mention selection.

The 5’5” guard enjoyed a memorable final campaign, averaging 12.5 ppg. and 5.1 rpg. More importantly, she handed out a school-record 249 assists while committing just 89 turnovers. Iorfido led the PSAC in assists and steals, and is ranked second in Division II in assists and 11th in steals. She ended the year with 95 steals, tied for third in the season records.

Iorfido shot 38.0 percent from the floor (130 of 342), including 19 of 70 on three-pointers (27.1 pct.), and was 96 of 145 from the line (66.2 pct.). She led the Fighting Scots in scoring eight times while scoring in double figures in 20 of 31 games. She had 11 games with 10-or-more assists, including 15, one shy of the school record, in the season opener against Alderson-Broaddus.

In addition to eight double-doubles, Iorfido recorded two triple-doubles. Only one other triple-double had been recorded in school history. Her first came in a win over Seton Hill, as she finished with 20 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds. The second came in the regular season finale, her final home appearance, as she posted career-highs of 29 points and 14 rebounds while handing out 10 assists in an overtime win against Shippensburg.

After earning second team All-PSAC West honors a year ago, Iorfido was not only named to the All-PSAC West first team as a senior, but she was also named the PSAC West Athlete of the Year. She was selected as the PSAC West Player of the Week five times.

Despite not becoming a starter until her junior season, Iorfido ranks among Edinboro’s career leaders in numerous categories. She set the career record for assists, concluding her career with 682. That figure is also the second-highest figure in PSAC annals. She ranks fourth in career steals (283), is fifth in career free throws made (275) and also fifth in career free throws attempted (415). In addition, she is tied for 23rd in career scoring with 932 points. She holds two of the top three season assists totals after finishing with 225 assists as a junior, good for third all-time.

Edinboro finished the season with a 21-10 record, advancing to the championship game of the PSAC Tournament before suffering a 63-59 loss at California(Pa.). The Fighting Scots were selected for the NCAA East Regional for the first time since 1997-98, dropping a 71-62 decision to eventual East Regional champion Charleston(WV) in the quarterfinals. Edinboro had a 73-42 record in her four seasons.

Iorfido also excelled in the classroom, with a 3.39 GPA as a Health & Physical Education major.

Nemergut is also a standout in the classroom, maintaining a 3.89 GPA while majoring in Special Education/Elementary Education. She has earned an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.

She earned All-American honors in cross country as a junior with a tenth place finish at Nationals, and was also an All-American in track earlier in 2004 following an eighth place finish in the 10,000 meters. A year she qualified again for nationals in her lone outdoor meet, but a stress fracture brought her season to a premature end. In cross country, she earned All-PSAC honors three times, and was named the PSAC Runner of the Year as a junior after winning both the PSAC and East Region individual titles. She would repeat as the PSAC champion this past fall, along with a third place finish at the regionals.

Nemergut was an All-East Region performer all four years, and was recognized as the 2004 NCAA Division II Coaches Association East Region Athlete of the Year. She has added all-conference honors four times in indoor track & field and twice in outdoor track. All told, she has qualified for the NCAA track & field championships in the mile, 3,000, 5,000 and 10,000.

During the course of her career, Nemergut has won no fewer than eight individual championships at various cross country meets.

Getting back to academics, Nemergut was named a third team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American a year ago, and is a three-time PSAC Top Ten honoree.