UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio – For 30 years, Chris Wenzler ‘90 dutifully and wonderfully served the John Carroll University community as sports information director. With his trademark humility and kindness, Wenzler developed a tradition of excellence, with his student army forming the foundation.

After his passing, the Ohio Athletic Conference unveiled the Wenzler Award in his honor. The award recognizes a student assistant who not only demonstrates dedication to sports information, but also to doing things the right way. For the third time in the four-year history of the award, a Blue Streak is the winner. 

Katie Suszynski is the 2024 recipient of the OAC’s Chris Wenzler Award. 

Suszynski enjoyed a fantastic four-year career in the John Carroll Sports Information Department. During her time at JCU, the Chardon High School grad developed into a top-rate graphic designer and a great leader. Suszynski helped with coverage of all 24 sports, shining especially bright as the lead volleyball broadcaster. 

Besides her work with sports information, Suszynski was also very involved on campus, including as President of the Women in Sports Leadership Club. Additionally, she worked as an intern for the Ohio Athletic Conference during the Spring 2024 semester. 

“Katie is very deserving of this prestigious award,” said Sports Information Director Joe Ginley ‘16. “Katie helped to establish a culture of women leadership in our office and on our campus. Her work ethic and productivity, especially with graphics, is simply unmatched. But the reason she is winning this award is for her mentorship of younger students and her uplifting leadership style. Katie is just the best and she has a bright future ahead.”

A Chardon native, Suszynski started at John Carroll during the pandemic, taking her first semester of classes online with her new classmates. Soon after Ginley started his role as sports information director in November 2020, Suszynski sent him an email asking about employment. As soon as sports resumed in January 2021, she started as a student worker. 

Suszynski quickly established herself as a trustworthy worker, helping in a variety of areas. During her four years, Suszynski helped with a wide range of gameday tasks, including broadcast production, play-by-play and color commentary, stats, PA announcing, and writing recaps. Her graphic design skills developed greatly, as her work frequently populated JCUSports.com and JCUSports social media. 

Her volleyball broadcast work proved especially vital. Suszynski voiced many memorable moments over the past few seasons, such as JCU’s home victory over Ohio Northern in 2022. This past year, Suszynski also played a vital role in upping the production value of basketball and soccer broadcasts. 

Suszynski helped to develop a positive culture for women leaders in the sports information department and on campus. Her work as President of the Women in Sports Leadership Club helped to elevate female student leaders on campus. She is the second straight Woman of Carroll to win the Wenzler Award, following Maddie Maselko ‘23. 

This spring past semester, Suszynski worked as an Intern for the Ohio Athletic Conference. With the OAC, she helped with the planning and execution of the inaugural football bowl game scheduled for December, aiding in areas such as sponsorship research, ticket pricing strategies, community outreach, web design, and social media content creation. Suszynski worked on a variety of other projects, such as record book updates, social media strategy, and coverage of winter and spring championships. 

“It is a profound honor to receive the 2024 OAC Wenzler Award,” said Suszynski. “Though I never met Chris, during my time in the John Carroll Sports Information Department I learned a great deal about him and his dedication to the students of John Carroll. Using his dedication as inspiration, my four years in the Sports Information Department were incredibly rewarding, filled with cherished friendships and memories that I will forever hold dear. I feel privileged to help carry on Chris’ legacy. I am deeply grateful to Joe Ginley for his unwavering support throughout my journey at John Carroll. I will forever be a Wenzler Warrior.”

Suszynski marks the third winner from John Carroll in the 4-year history of the award. 

After graduating Magna Cum Laude from John Carroll in May with her Bachelor of Science degree, Suszynski is looking forward to growing her leadership skills in the sports industry. 

All-Time Chris Wenzler Award Recipients 

2024: Katie Suszynski, John Carroll

2023: Maddie Maselko, John Carroll 

2022: Stephanie Drapp, Heidelberg

2021: Kyle Kelly and Noah Tylutki, John Carroll