Austintown, Ohio – March 1, 2010 – The Ohio Athletic Conference office announced the release of the 2010 men’s basketball all-league honors today, March 1. Heidelberg University’s Dane Givner (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Harvest Preparatory) was tabbed the OAC Freshman of the Year and earned a spot on the honorable mention list, while senior Josh Calver (Shelby, Ohio / Shelby) was a second team recipient. The league head coaches voted on the honorees.
Givner is picking up the first freshman of the year honor in the conference. He joins Bill Dufur and Jerry Buccilla as top award winners in the OAC. Dufur and Buccilla were named the Mike Gregory OAC Player of the Years, marking the most outstanding player in the conference, in 1990 and 1984, respectively.
In his inaugural campaign Givner was second on the team in scoring at 10.9 points a game, while dishing out 64 assists. He also hauled in 4.1 rebounds a game and pocketed 31 steals. For the year he reached double figures in 16 outings, including 11 of the last 14 games. He exploded for a season-best 28 points in the quarterfinal round of the OAC Tournament to help lead the Berg to a win over Ohio Northern University, marking the first win in Ada in 15 games.
Calver is picking up his second all-league nod. His second team honor joins his spot on the honorable mention list as a junior. In his final campaign, Calver led the team in scoring with 13.8 points a game, along with topping the team with 85 assists. He was second with 28 steals and added 3.3 rebounds a night. For the year he eclipsed double figures in scoring in 19 contests. In the OAC Semifinals he recorded a career-high 30 points to help lead the Berg to an upset of no. 1 seed and host John Carroll University.
Heidelberg, under the guidance of second-year head coach Anthony Gholson, finished the year at 15-13 overall and 9-9 in the OAC. The Berg made its 49th appearance in the OAC Tournament, including its fourth-straight. Along the tournament trail Heidelberg posted upsets over no. 4 Ohio Northern in the semifinals and unseated no. 1 John Carroll on its home court to make its seventh trip to the OAC Tournament Championship game.