Michael Shimek an Ashland football All-American, Quentin Toles stars at UAH

Michael Shimek picked up a lot of awards for his defensive play with the Ashland University football team this fall, but his latest honors top the list.

The 6-foot-1, 246-pound senior defensive end from North Canton and a Hoover High graduate was named a Division II first-team All-American choice by the longstanding Walter Camp Football Foundation. Prior to that, he was named a first-team All-America by both the American Football Coaches Association and the Conference Commissioner’s Association.

Shimek made 60 tackles, 32 unassisted, but that’s just half the story. He made 17 ½ sacks for 121 yards in losses. And, he had three forced fumbles, two blocked kicks, five quarterback hits and a pass breakup. That helped the Eagles finish 10-3.

Beside the All-American honors, Shimek was a finalist for the Gene Upshaw Award (Division II senior lineman of the year) and nominated for the Harlon Hill Trophy (Division II player of the year). And, added to that, he was All-Super Region 3 Defensive Player of the Year and the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year.

Levi Hellmann (Jackson)

The sophomore wrapped up the first semester with a big effort for the West Virginia men’s swim team at George Washington’s diving-only meet on Dec. 20 in Washington, D.C. Hellmann won the 1-meter (296.33) and was second in the 3-meter (307.80). He had another strong effort at the West Virginia Invitational, Nov. 20-22, winning both the 1-meter and platform to help the Mountaineers post an easy victory in the five-team meet.

Quentin Toles (Perry)

The senior point guard was named Gulf Coast Conference Player of the Week on Dec. 22 after leading the Alabama-Huntsville men’s basketball team to a pair of conference victories on Dec. 18 and Dec. 20. Toles had 24 points in a 72-68 victory over Mississippi College and 21 points in a 76-63 win over Delta State, pushing the Chargers to 9-3 overall and 4-2 in conference play. Toles leads the team in scoring (18.2) and has hit 33 of 79 (.418) 3-pointers. He also was player of the week on Nov. 18.

Sophia Gregory (West Branch)

The 6-2 sophomore forward is having a solid all-around season with the Youngstown State women’s basketball team (8-4 , 2-1 Horizon League). Gregory is averaging 8.8 points a game and leads the team in rebounding with an 8.2 average. She has had four double-doubles. And she has chipped in with 31 assists, 18 steals and 12 blocked shots. Gregory averaged 10.2 points and 7.9 rebounds in 26 games as a freshman.

Blake Schaffer (Louisville)

The senior continues to be a solid performer for the Kent State wrestling team (5-3. Schaffer, competing at 197 pounds, helped Kent State win two recent matches, as he posted a 7-2 decision against Gardner-Webb on Dec. 13 and a 14-6 major decision against Chattanooga on Dec. 19. He takes a 10-3 record into the second half of the season.

Conner McClure (Green)

The senior opened the indoor track season with the Virginia Tech men’s team by finishing third in the pole vault in the best of four divisions at the 2025 Liberty Kick Off, Dec. 4-5. McClure had a height of 17-0.75 and he hit that on his fifth try. His personal record in the event is 18-10.25, which he recorded when he finished third at the Texas Relays in April 2024.

La’Kasja Edwards (Alliance)

The Akron Zips junior posted a personal record in the weight throw when she finished fifth at the Haynes Lancaster Open on Dec. 12 in Akron. Edwards had a heave of 52-4.25. She opened the indoor season by finishing fourth in the discus throw at Youngstown’s Icebreaker on Dec. 5 with a toss of 130-3. Her personal best in the discus is 142-2, which she recorded when she finished second at Mount Union’s Homon Open last April.

Olivia Scheibelhoffer (Green)

The sophomore had a big meet for the Findlay women’s swim team prior to the holiday break on Dec. 13 at Bowling Green, topping John Carroll 123-99 and losing 175-100 to the Division I Falcons. Scheibelhoffer won the 50 free with a Division II provisional time of 23.44 and touched the wall first in the 100 butterfly in 56.30. She also swam legs on the 200 freestyle and 200 medley relay teams, both finishing second.

Jack Katigbak (Lake Center Christian)

The sophomore was the leading scorer for the Westminster (Pa.) men’s swim team at the Wooster Invitational, Dec. 4-6. He finished fifth in the 100 backstroke (52.48) and fifth in the 200 backstroke (1:57.40). Katigbak also picked up points for finishing 16th in the 50 freestyle (21.91) and helping three relays finish 11th and another place 13th. Westminster was seventh out of 10 teams.

Malia Mizeres (Tuslaw)

The 5-8 freshman guard is providing solid play for the Heidelberg women’s basketball team (1-8, 0-2 OAC). Mizeres has started all nine contests and is averaging 7.2 points a game. She is tied for first in rebounding with a 6.7 average and has 28 assists, 12 steals and seven blocked shots. She just missed a triple-double when she had 12 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists in an 84-50 victory over Earlham on Nov. 30.

A’Niah Culler (McKinley)

The senior competed in her first-ever collegiate 300-meter sprint for the Tiffin women’s indoor track team and finished seventh with a time of 46.04 at the university’s Alumni Open on Dec. 13. Prior to that, the sprinter competed in the 60 and 200 indoors and the 100 and 200 outdoors. Her best times are 8.36 for the 60, 13.25 for the 100 and 27.36 for the 200.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Michael Shimek a football All-American and more college sports updates