2019 Spring Commencement Graduates

I like how I said this in the fall, so allow me to quote myself:

“Picking a college isn’t just a decision that affects you for four years. No, it’s one that sets the tone for the entire experience after it. And, sure, you can say that a person has a lot of individual control over their own destiny, carpe diem and whatnot, but Georgia Tech sets students up for success in a way few other schools can dream to ever achieve. The unifying aspect of college athletics, and indeed the beauty of it, is that each one of those athletes is also a student. Georgia Tech isn’t defined solely by its athletics, and the appeal of a degree that matters is a huge part of what it means to choose to come to Georgia Tech. Everyone comes to Tech their own way, for their own unique set of reasons, be they a student, faculty, or fan, but, on this day, we give thanks to these fine people for their hard work, we recognize their accomplishments, and we wish them the very best on the journey that is the rest of their lives.”

In the last four years at Tech, they have seen and contributed to many terrific accomplishments. These graduating football players are some of the last to have experienced the indescribable joy of the Miracle on Techwood Drive from the sideline at Grant Field. They hung hundreds upon hundreds of yards on teams from Tennessee to Louisville to Virginia Tech. They stole a thrilling win, perhaps one of the best in program history, from their archrival Athenians on the road. They are the last bastion of an era, of triple option football and Russell Athletic, now destined to fade out into our fuzzy memories. From men’s golf, two time conference champions, to softball, likely headed back to the postseason ACC tournament for the second year in a row after the better part of a decade wandering in the wilderness. Volleyball’s lone graduate saw their first postseason in quite some time. And, of course, men’s swimming and diving and women’s cross country both finished this season with their best showings at NCAAs in years. Very distinctly, I’ll miss Abdoulaye Gueye and how much progress he made on the Flats. It’ll be weird to walk into Bobby Dodd Stadium without familiar faces on the sidelines from the past few years, from Parker Braun to A. J. Gray, and from Brad Stewart to TaQuon Marshall. Stewart is destined to be remembered for his excellent leadership - Paul Johnson was oft quoted as wishing he “had a whole team of Brad Stewarts,” most memorably after the Miami Whiteout this past year - as well as Brandon Gaudin’s exasperated and amazed call that he was a true freshman as he reeled in one of the many mini miracles that built up to the amazing finish of the Miracle on Techwood Drive. Marshall, on the other hand, was a wily leader, excellent runner, and is probably still running roughshod down the turf at Mercedes Benz Stadium. Say what you will about the outcome of that game, but his performance in the Chick Fil A Kickoff Game was one of the greatest individual performances any Tech quarterback has ever had. Eddie Lee Ivory-esque, one might think.

Thanks to RamblinWreck.com for the complete list of graduates:

Baseball

Micah Carpenter - Business Administration
Jacob Esch - Civil Engineering
Josh Heddinger - Business Administration

Men’s Basketball

Brandon Alston - Master’s in Economics
Abdoulaye Gueye - Business Administration
Sylvester Ogbonda - Business Administration

Women’s Basketball

Bre Brown - Master’s in Digital Media
Martine Fortune - Literature, Media and Communication
Kaylan Pugh - History, Technology and Society

Football

Victor Alexander - Literature, Media and Communication
Parker Braun - Literature, Media and Communication
Kyle Cerge-Henderson - Business Administration
Tyler Cooksey - Business Administration
Nathan Cottrell - Business Administration
David Curry - Business Administration
Shawn Davis - Business Administration
Carson Fletcher - Aerospace Engineering
A.J. Gray - Business Administration
Cheyenne Hunt - Master’s in Civil Engineering
Bailey Ivemeyer - Mechanical Engineering
Tre Jackson - Master’s in Building Construction
Antonio Mallard - Mechanical Engineering
Andrew Marshall - Master’s in Building Construction
TaQuon Marshall - Business Administration
Brant Mitchell - Business Administration
Brad Morgan - Business Administration
Brad Stewart - Mechanical Engineering

Golf

James Clark - Business Administration

Softball

Kaylee Ellebracht - Business Administration
Katie Krzus - Business Administration
Sydney Stavro - Business Administration

Spirit Program

Laura Fagan - Civil Engineering
Kyle Hosford - Computer Science
Hyewon Jung - Mechanical Engineering
Randy Liang - Master’s in Mechanical Engineering
Annie Ni - Industrial Engineering
Manaka Sato - Biomedical Engineering
Kate Zahniser-Word - Civil Engineering

Swimming and Diving

Lila Best - Business Administration
Laura Branton - Business Administration
Matthew Casillas - Business Administration
Sara Gilbert - Business Administration
Florina Ilie - Business Administration
Moises Loschi - Mechanical Engineering
Nolan Mallet - Biomedical Engineering
Joseph Portillo - Mechanical Engineering
Iris Wang - Industrial Engineering
Colton Williamson - Business Administration

Men’s Tennis

Phillip Gresk - Literature, Media and Communication

Track and Field/Cross Country

Christian Bowles - Business Administration
Gabriel Darosa - Computer Engineering
Rebecca Dow - Industrial Engineering
Jag Gangemi - Master’s in Physics
Anna Hightower - Business Administration
Bria Matthews - Electrical Engineering
Alexandra Melehan - Mechanical Engineering
Daniel Pietsch - Mechanical Engineering
Mary Prouty - Computer Science
Amy Ruiz - Electrical Engineering
Mitchell Sanders - Aerospace Engineering
Nahom Solomon - Master’s in Electrical Engineering
Haley Stumvoll - Electrical Engineering
Ryan Thomas - Mechanical Engineering
Andreas Ward - Mechanical Engineering

Volleyball

Lauren Frerking - Business Administration

To all sixty five graduates, across eleven sports, we here at From the Rumble Seat wish you the very best wherever your Georgia Tech degree may take you, from professional athletics, to graduate school, to the top of your fields - you will go far. To those moving on from Tech, or varsity athletics after this season, we thank you for your time and dedication to the Institute, as well. We cannot wait to see what you all become. Thank you for being Yellow Jackets.