Alpena Community College Hosts Inaugural Lumberjack Athletics Celebration

Alpena Community College held its first annual Lumberjack Athletics Celebration on Wednesday evening, April 29, 2026, in the Granum Theater on the ACC campus. The well-attended event brought together student-athletes, coaches, and the ACC community to celebrate the accomplishments of the 2025-26 Lumberjack athletic programs.

Athletic Director Allen Telgenhof opened the evening by recognizing the people who work behind the scenes to make ACC athletics possible — college administrators, staff, the ACC Foundation, and support personnel — nearly all of whom were in attendance to share in the celebration.

"Tonight is not just an awards ceremony. It is a celebration of what we built together this year — as athletes, as coaches, as a staff, and as a community. And it will be a tradition."

The ceremony recognized student-athletes across all ten Lumberjack sports programs, including three programs competing in their inaugural season: men’s soccer, women’s soccer, and women’s cross country. Telgenhof called those first-year athletes pioneers and trailblazers who will always be remembered as the founders of their respective programs at ACC.

The evening began with the presentation of All-Conference certificates to Lumberjack student-athletes who earned conference recognition during the 2025-26 season, followed by the first ever Scholar-Athlete Awards in ACC history. The Scholar-Athlete Award recognizes student-athletes who achieved both Dean’s List and All-Conference honors in the same year, representing the complete student-athlete.

The baseball program swept the team voting awards, winning both the Team Spirit Award — presented to the program with the best internal culture — and the We Are One Award — presented to the program whose athletes most consistently showed up to support other Lumberjack teams throughout the year.

The Best Teammate award, voted on by coaches, went to volleyball’s Racquelle Miller, recognized for making everyone around her better throughout the season. The Grinder award, also coach-voted and presented to the most underrated worker in ACC athletics, was claimed by men’s basketball’s Aiden Steele.

Alivia Freel of volleyball was a dominant winner of the Freshman of the Year Female award, while men’s basketball freshman Kobe Johnson claimed the Freshman of the Year Male award. Both awards were determined by peer vote among ACC student-athletes.

Volleyball standout Racquelle Miller and softball star Kirsten Neubecker were among the night’s top vote-getters in an exceptionally close race for the Lumberjack of the Year Female award, with Neubecker ultimately taking home the honor by a narrow margin. Men’s basketball sophomore Derian Williams claimed the Lumberjack of the Year Male award in an equally tight race with baseball’s Charlie Best, with Williams edging Best by just two points in peer voting.

In a surprise presentation, Telgenhof announced the inaugural Lumberjack Legacy Award, honoring a student-athlete whose career at ACC speaks for itself. The first-ever recipient was Abby Platt, a multi-sport athlete who competed at ACC for four years and who played a key role in bringing the first women’s soccer program in ACC history to life.

The evening closed with the announcement of the Program of the Year, awarded to the ACC Esports program in its debut season. Head coach Aaron Guitar built the program from scratch, recruiting an entire roster during the school year. The Rainbow Six Siege team competed in their first year of play, while the Rocket League team advanced deep into national championship competition.

The Lumberjack Athletics Celebration is expected to become an annual tradition at Alpena Community College.