Click HERE to view Alyssa's video presentation and acceptance speech.
As the author of a series of firsts in the history of the North Central College women’s golf program, Alyssa Gaudio ’11/M ’13 certainly placed a high priority on personal improvement as a student-athlete.
That focus, however, was always rooted in a desire to be the best teammate she could be, and it helped her lead the Cardinals to new heights as a group as well.
Gaudio made an impact right away her freshman year, winning the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) individual championship and qualifying for the NCAA Division III National Championship, becoming the first in the program’s history to do both. She went on to become the first Cardinal to sink a hole-in-one in tournament play and the first to earn All-American Scholar honors from the Women’s Golf Coaches Association (WGCA).
During Gaudio’s senior year, North Central began to break new ground as a team, setting new school records for the lowest 18-, 36- and 54-hole rounds as well as a new record for stroke average in a single season. While each player’s individual expectations rose during this time, the team dynamic remained steadfastly the same.
“Being on the road is one of the most fun things about college athletics,” Gaudio said. “(Golfers) get to be with each other so much more than a lot of other sports because you spend three to four days, all day, together, and you try to help each other and learn from one another.
“It grows within everyone, and I’m still really close with a lot of the players I played with, and that’s from a special bond that was created, especially since we accomplished some firsts in the program together.”
Gaudio was able to close her career with a return trip to the national championship, this time as part of a qualifying team, and earned the program’s first All-America award as well.
“I remember, going (to nationals) my freshman year, we were at the banquet after the practice round, and I said, ‘this is just not as much fun on your own,’” she said. “At that moment, I made it my goal to come back with the team, and it was so much more enjoyable. To be able to have another first for the program’s history again, it was very special to cap off my career with the whole team.”
The recipient of the College’s Cleo Tanner Award in 2018 for her contributions to women’s sports at North Central, Gaudio extols the importance of individual improvement for the betterment of her team now as a collegiate head coach in her own right.
“That’s something you don’t always realize when you’re a player, that you need to be the best you you can be,” she said. “Not that you shouldn’t put your team first, but if you’re not a good you academically and athletically, you’re not going to be good for your team.
“It’s pretty amazing to see how much anyone can accomplish with just a desire to get better.”
