Georgia College & State University alumnae standouts Shanteona Keys (’15) and Whitney Okvist Pape (’14) were inducted Oct. 17 into the GCSU Athletics Hall of Fame at Georgia College’s East Campus at Lake Laurel.
The Athletics Hall of Fame was established in 2006 to recognize individuals who have distinguished themselves with excellence in the university’s athletics program as a student-athlete, coach/ administrator, with outstanding service or a combination. Keys and Pape are the 43rd and 44th inductees into the Hall of Fame.
“Shanteona and Whitney are outstanding people and students, first and foremost,” GCSU Director of Athletics Wendell Staton said. “Additionally, they were outstanding in their performance on the court and field.
“Their experiences at GCSU have carried over into their adult lives where they are doing great in their careers and impacting their communities in such a positive way,” added Staton. “They are fantastic ambassadors for our university and represent the holistic experience that we provide at GCSU.”
Shanteona Keys
Keys, who was a standout guard for the Bobcats from 2011-15, finished her career as the all-time leading scorer in the GCSU record books with 1,822 points, placing her 10th overall on the Peach Belt Conference list.
She averaged 16.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 33.3 minutes per game in 110 career contests. She pulled down 549 rebounds while shooting 43% from the floor (including 36.2% from three-point range) and 76.4% from the free throw line.
The Roswell native graduated with a degree in mass communication and a minor in rhetoric. Keys was a GCSU valedictorian in the spring of 2015 with a 4.0 grade-point average, one of nine Bobcat student-athletes who have been named a class valedictorian.
Whitney Okvist Pape
Pape, who patrolled the outfield for four seasons for the Bobcats from 201114, finished her career with 163 stolen bases, which is No. 1 on the all-time list for both GCSU and the Peach Belt, and No. 11 in NCAA Division II history. Her 53 stolen bases during the 2012 season ranked third best in NCAA Division II that year.
The Kennesaw native recorded a 0.377 batting average in 195 career games. She holds the No. 1 spot in Bobcat history in hits (244), runs scored (174) and second in at-bats (648).
Pape, who is the sixth Bobcat softball player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, graduated with a degree in early childhood education and was named to the NFCA All-Academic team in 2014.
— Contributed