Women’s Track & Field/XC’s Doan Wins 2024 Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award
7/1/2024 12:00:00 PM | Cross Country, Track and Field
Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award Page
Calli Doan of the Liberty women's track & field/cross country program has been named the 2024 Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award winner.
Doan is the ninth member of the Liberty women's track & field/cross country program to win the Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award but the first since 2013, when 2024 Liberty Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Jennifer Klugh was honored.
Rock Royer was Liberty's first football coach in 1973. Mac Rivera was a member of Liberty's men's basketball team from 1972 until 1975. Both Rock Royer and Mac Rivera tragically died at a young age, with Royer dying in a plane crash and Rivera passing away after a fall.
This award encompasses more than just athletic ability. It recognizes the Liberty University graduating senior student-athlete who has maintained an exemplary testimony on the playing field, in the classroom and among the student body.
"Calli is a standout athlete who has embodied the mission and vision of Liberty University to be a Champion for Christ," stated track & field/cross country assistant coach Heather Zealand (winner of the 2002 Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award). "She has been devout in her athletic pursuits as well as her academics, and her abundance of awards and accolades speaks to her commitment to excellence."
"Calli has served and led faithfully as captain, Bible study leader, mentor and example on the track and cross country team. Her intentionality to invest in her teammates as well as in her church youth group shows her devotion to the people God places in her life. Calli is a model student who has raised the standard in all aspects for our team."
A week ago, Doan closed out a stellar six years as part of the women's track & field/cross country program by competing in the steeplechase at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field.
She finished as a three-time All-American, matching the most All-America honors a Liberty women's track & field/cross country athlete has earned at the NCAA Division I level. Doan earned her first All-America recognition with a 28th-place finish at the 2021 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships. She then collected back-to-back second team All-America honors in the women's steeplechase in 2023 (11th place) and 2024 (10th place).
An 11-time individual conference champion and a 20-time all-conference performer, Doan was part of nine Liberty teams which captured conference titles. She also helped the Liberty women's cross country squad qualify to the NCAA Division I Championships for the first time in the spring of 2021.
Doan owns five program records, including the cross country 5K (16:15.1), cross country 6K (19:50.6), indoor mile (4:36.52), indoor 3K (9:24.67) and outdoor steeplechase (9:49.54). She recorded the 13 fastest steeplechase times in program history.
A native of Apex, N.C., Doan was named the 2023 ASUN Conference Student-Athlete of the Year, spanning all sports. She also took home both the Most Valuable Female Performer and Women's Most Outstanding Track Performer honors at the 2023 ASUN Indoor Track & Field Championships.
Doan is a two-time CSC Academic All-America® honoree, making the second team in both 2022 and 2023. She will have a chance to make it three next month following her unprecedented fifth appearance on the CSC Academic All-District® squad.
Doan's other academic accolades include six USTFCCCA All-Academic Team honors, four ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards, eight conference All-Academic Team appearances and a trio of VaSID Academic All-State showings.
In the community, Doan has been active as a youth group leader and greeter at Living Word Church. She has also volunteered at the Virginia 10-Miler and with the Trick or Treat so Others Can Eat canned food drive.
Doan graduated in May 2022 with a bachelor's degree in exercise science, maintaining a 3.99 GPA. She owns a 4.0 graduate GPA, including a master's degree in human performance (completed in May 2023) and an ongoing pursuit of a Ph.D. in health sciences.
Doan plans to remain at Liberty in 2024-25 to continue working toward her Ph.D. She will also serve as an assistant for the track & field/cross country program as she continues training as a distance runner.
"Competing for Liberty University's track & field team has taught me what it truly means to 'do everything for the glory of God,'" commented Doan. "Through weekly team chapel services and the intentional mentorship from the entire coaching staff, I have become better equipped to run in a way that magnifies the name of the Lord. Rather than viewing my faith as a catalyst for my running, I view running as a catalyst for my faith."
"In addition to growing my reliance on the Lord, this sport is a means of multiplying the talents and the environment God has blessed me with. Through my dedication in training and my dependency on God in the midst of a race, I get to cultivate the gifts I have been given as an act of worship."
"Lastly, track provides an opportunity to interact with people all over the country and share the light of Jesus, whether that is through my attitude or my conversations with others I join for a cooldown. True faithfulness to God rests in using any level of platform we are provided with to share the love of Jesus Christ. These lessons I have learned from my time at Liberty I will take with me as I strive to be a champion for Christ wherever God leads me."
Doan is the 57th overall recipient of this distinguished award, and this is the 51st year Liberty Athletics has presented its top athletics honor to a well-deserving senior student-athlete.
Rock Royer Award
1974 – Rick Herceg – Football
1975 - Sling Patterson – Football
1976 - David Neff – Football
1977 - Scott Goetz – Football
Mac Rivera Award
1977 - Paul Dalton - Men's Basketball
Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award
1978 - Gary Avila – Wrestling
1979 - Dave Anderson – Football
1980 - Karl Hess - Men's Basketball
1981 - David "D.J." Hertzler – Football
1982 - Sharon Snodgrass - Women's Basketball
1983 - Bill Gillespie - Football/Men's Track & Field
1984 - Rick Sielhamer - Wrestling
1985 - Sue Andrew - Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
1985 - Dave Bream - Baseball
1986 - Ron Stamer - Men's Soccer
1987 - Pam Wilder - Women's Basketball
1988 – Annie Hunt Fairchild – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
1988 – Andre Sims – Football
1989 - Kathy Guetterman - Volleyball
1990 - Lynn Attwood – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field/Women's Basketball
1991 - Craig Holiday - Wrestling
1992 - Mike Coleman - Men's Basketball
1993 - Theresa Bream - Volleyball/Women's Basketball
1994 - James Downey - Football
1994 - Matt Hildebrand - Men's Basketball
1995 - Todd Setsma - Men's Golf
1996 - Ryan Werner – Men's Track & Field
1997 - Michael Prettyman – Men's Track & Field
1998 - Ben Anderson - Football
1999 - Jarrod Everson - Football
2000 - Elena Kisseleva - Women's Basketball
2001 - Andrea Wildrick – Women's Track & Field
2001 - Nathan Day - Men's Basketball
2002 - Heather Sagan – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
2003 - Collin Mascagni - Men's Soccer
2004 - Tatiana Tkachuk - Volleyball
2005 - Sam Gado – Football
2005 – Danielle McNaney – Women's Track & Field
2006 - Sonia Rodriguez - Women's Soccer
2006 - Phillip Thompson - Baseball
2007 - Arlene Zelinskas – Women's Track & Field
2008 - Allyson Fasnacht - Women's Basketball
2009 - Beth Bennett - Softball
2010 - Chris Rocco - Football
2011 - Zach Duke - Football
2012 - Jesse Sanders - Men's Basketball
2013 - Jennifer Klugh – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
2014 - Trey Lambert - Baseball
2015 – Alex Close – Baseball
2016 – Ashley Rininger – Women's Basketball
2017 – Holly Van Noord – Women's Soccer
2018 – Evangeline Crist – Women's Tennis
2019 – Alicia Finnigan – Women's Swimming & Diving
2020 – Hannah Baker – Women's Swimming & Diving
2021 – Kieran Vincent, Men's Golf
2022 – Jill Bolton, Field Hockey
2023 – Jonathan Yaun, Men's Golf
2024 – Calli Doan – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
Calli Doan of the Liberty women's track & field/cross country program has been named the 2024 Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award winner.
Doan is the ninth member of the Liberty women's track & field/cross country program to win the Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award but the first since 2013, when 2024 Liberty Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Jennifer Klugh was honored.
In 1974, the Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award was established to honor the top senior student-athlete at Liberty University who best exemplifies the standards and lives of both of these great Christian men.
Rock Royer was Liberty's first football coach in 1973. Mac Rivera was a member of Liberty's men's basketball team from 1972 until 1975. Both Rock Royer and Mac Rivera tragically died at a young age, with Royer dying in a plane crash and Rivera passing away after a fall.
This award encompasses more than just athletic ability. It recognizes the Liberty University graduating senior student-athlete who has maintained an exemplary testimony on the playing field, in the classroom and among the student body.
"Calli is a standout athlete who has embodied the mission and vision of Liberty University to be a Champion for Christ," stated track & field/cross country assistant coach Heather Zealand (winner of the 2002 Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award). "She has been devout in her athletic pursuits as well as her academics, and her abundance of awards and accolades speaks to her commitment to excellence."
"Calli has served and led faithfully as captain, Bible study leader, mentor and example on the track and cross country team. Her intentionality to invest in her teammates as well as in her church youth group shows her devotion to the people God places in her life. Calli is a model student who has raised the standard in all aspects for our team."
A week ago, Doan closed out a stellar six years as part of the women's track & field/cross country program by competing in the steeplechase at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field.
She finished as a three-time All-American, matching the most All-America honors a Liberty women's track & field/cross country athlete has earned at the NCAA Division I level. Doan earned her first All-America recognition with a 28th-place finish at the 2021 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships. She then collected back-to-back second team All-America honors in the women's steeplechase in 2023 (11th place) and 2024 (10th place).
An 11-time individual conference champion and a 20-time all-conference performer, Doan was part of nine Liberty teams which captured conference titles. She also helped the Liberty women's cross country squad qualify to the NCAA Division I Championships for the first time in the spring of 2021.
Doan owns five program records, including the cross country 5K (16:15.1), cross country 6K (19:50.6), indoor mile (4:36.52), indoor 3K (9:24.67) and outdoor steeplechase (9:49.54). She recorded the 13 fastest steeplechase times in program history.
A native of Apex, N.C., Doan was named the 2023 ASUN Conference Student-Athlete of the Year, spanning all sports. She also took home both the Most Valuable Female Performer and Women's Most Outstanding Track Performer honors at the 2023 ASUN Indoor Track & Field Championships.
Doan is a two-time CSC Academic All-America® honoree, making the second team in both 2022 and 2023. She will have a chance to make it three next month following her unprecedented fifth appearance on the CSC Academic All-District® squad.
Doan's other academic accolades include six USTFCCCA All-Academic Team honors, four ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards, eight conference All-Academic Team appearances and a trio of VaSID Academic All-State showings.
In the community, Doan has been active as a youth group leader and greeter at Living Word Church. She has also volunteered at the Virginia 10-Miler and with the Trick or Treat so Others Can Eat canned food drive.
Doan graduated in May 2022 with a bachelor's degree in exercise science, maintaining a 3.99 GPA. She owns a 4.0 graduate GPA, including a master's degree in human performance (completed in May 2023) and an ongoing pursuit of a Ph.D. in health sciences.
Doan plans to remain at Liberty in 2024-25 to continue working toward her Ph.D. She will also serve as an assistant for the track & field/cross country program as she continues training as a distance runner.
"Competing for Liberty University's track & field team has taught me what it truly means to 'do everything for the glory of God,'" commented Doan. "Through weekly team chapel services and the intentional mentorship from the entire coaching staff, I have become better equipped to run in a way that magnifies the name of the Lord. Rather than viewing my faith as a catalyst for my running, I view running as a catalyst for my faith."
"In addition to growing my reliance on the Lord, this sport is a means of multiplying the talents and the environment God has blessed me with. Through my dedication in training and my dependency on God in the midst of a race, I get to cultivate the gifts I have been given as an act of worship."
"Lastly, track provides an opportunity to interact with people all over the country and share the light of Jesus, whether that is through my attitude or my conversations with others I join for a cooldown. True faithfulness to God rests in using any level of platform we are provided with to share the love of Jesus Christ. These lessons I have learned from my time at Liberty I will take with me as I strive to be a champion for Christ wherever God leads me."
Doan is the 57th overall recipient of this distinguished award, and this is the 51st year Liberty Athletics has presented its top athletics honor to a well-deserving senior student-athlete.
Rock Royer Award
1974 – Rick Herceg – Football
1975 - Sling Patterson – Football
1976 - David Neff – Football
1977 - Scott Goetz – Football
Mac Rivera Award
1977 - Paul Dalton - Men's Basketball
Rock Royer/Mac Rivera Award
1978 - Gary Avila – Wrestling
1979 - Dave Anderson – Football
1980 - Karl Hess - Men's Basketball
1981 - David "D.J." Hertzler – Football
1982 - Sharon Snodgrass - Women's Basketball
1983 - Bill Gillespie - Football/Men's Track & Field
1984 - Rick Sielhamer - Wrestling
1985 - Sue Andrew - Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
1985 - Dave Bream - Baseball
1986 - Ron Stamer - Men's Soccer
1987 - Pam Wilder - Women's Basketball
1988 – Annie Hunt Fairchild – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
1988 – Andre Sims – Football
1989 - Kathy Guetterman - Volleyball
1990 - Lynn Attwood – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field/Women's Basketball
1991 - Craig Holiday - Wrestling
1992 - Mike Coleman - Men's Basketball
1993 - Theresa Bream - Volleyball/Women's Basketball
1994 - James Downey - Football
1994 - Matt Hildebrand - Men's Basketball
1995 - Todd Setsma - Men's Golf
1996 - Ryan Werner – Men's Track & Field
1997 - Michael Prettyman – Men's Track & Field
1998 - Ben Anderson - Football
1999 - Jarrod Everson - Football
2000 - Elena Kisseleva - Women's Basketball
2001 - Andrea Wildrick – Women's Track & Field
2001 - Nathan Day - Men's Basketball
2002 - Heather Sagan – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
2003 - Collin Mascagni - Men's Soccer
2004 - Tatiana Tkachuk - Volleyball
2005 - Sam Gado – Football
2005 – Danielle McNaney – Women's Track & Field
2006 - Sonia Rodriguez - Women's Soccer
2006 - Phillip Thompson - Baseball
2007 - Arlene Zelinskas – Women's Track & Field
2008 - Allyson Fasnacht - Women's Basketball
2009 - Beth Bennett - Softball
2010 - Chris Rocco - Football
2011 - Zach Duke - Football
2012 - Jesse Sanders - Men's Basketball
2013 - Jennifer Klugh – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
2014 - Trey Lambert - Baseball
2015 – Alex Close – Baseball
2016 – Ashley Rininger – Women's Basketball
2017 – Holly Van Noord – Women's Soccer
2018 – Evangeline Crist – Women's Tennis
2019 – Alicia Finnigan – Women's Swimming & Diving
2020 – Hannah Baker – Women's Swimming & Diving
2021 – Kieran Vincent, Men's Golf
2022 – Jill Bolton, Field Hockey
2023 – Jonathan Yaun, Men's Golf
2024 – Calli Doan – Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
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