Small colleges like West Virginia Wesleyan College often promote the concept of student athlete to prospective students and their parents.  Perhaps, no student at Wesleyan personifies this concept more than Kareen Bilotta. Whether it is in a softball uniform leading the Lady Bobcats to the NCAA Division II Regional tournament or preparing Wesleyan’s Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team to a potential national championship, this 3.9 grade-point-average student from Fairmont certainly is the embodiment of what a student-athlete should be.

“It is certainly a challenge to juggle athletics, a student leadership position, and academics,” remarked Bilotta.  “I had to quickly learn time management at Wesleyan.  I write everything down and keep a calendar close by. My experience here has been absolutely wonderful.”

A typical day for Bilotta begins with breakfast, followed by classes, organizational meetings, lunch, a session in the training room, and a few hours on the softball field, usually for a doubleheader. Repeat that schedule four or five times a week and you have a day in the life of Bilotta. “It keeps me busy, but there is not anything I would rather be doing at this point in my life.”

On the softball diamond, the former East Fairmont High stand-out was a tri-captain of the 2006 team that just wrapped up another appearance in the NCAA Division II Regional Tournament. The third baseman helped the Lady ‘Cats to a 44-22 record, hitting .329 with two home runs and 29 runs-batted-in. The Lady ‘Cats have won two West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) titles during Bilotta’s stay at Wesleyan, winning its last year and repeating the feat again this year.

“Everywhere you look on this team, you see so many talented players,” said Bilotta. “I could not ask for anything more. I have been able to go places I had never been before with the team and had the opportunity to play against some amazing players and teams.”
During her playing career, she has been named WVIAC Player of the Week, named Second Team All-WVIAC, First Team WVIAC Conference Tournament, and First Team All-District Academic Team. “Kareen has been an outstanding student-athlete at Wesleyan,” remarked Wesleyan head coach Steve Warner ‘90.

While part of a championship team on the softball field, she is also part of a championship team inside the classroom. The Wesleyan SIFE team will be one of 120 teams throughout the United States competing for the national championship from May 21-23 in Kansas City, MO. Wesleyan advanced to the finals after winning a regional title in Cincinnati, OH.  It was the College’s sixth straight regional championship.

SIFE is a global organization with over 1,000 participating colleges and universities. Its mission is to provide education on the importance of understanding business and marketing. Some of the SIFE projects she has worked on include the Kayamandi Outreach Project which helps disadvantaged African-American women establish a coop to market native crafts and the Work Focus Program in which she developed seminars on financial self-management of Headstart parents.

“I truly enjoy being a part of the SIFE team,” commented Bilotta. “I think the values that SIFE upholds are very important. One of the main reasons I enjoy it so much is that we are helping people help themselves. We are not simply giving people handouts, but giving them the knowledge to improve.”

In the classroom, she was recently honored at Wesleyan’s annual awards assembly with the “Outstanding Economics Student” award and was named to the Who’s Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities. A recipient of the Presidential Scholarship, she also is an academic honor member with Alpha Lambda Delta (Freshmen Academic Honorary), Delta Mu Delta (National Business Honorary), Phi Kappa Phi (Junior Academic Honorary), and Pi Gamma Mu (Social Sciences Honorary).

“When I was deciding on what college to attend after high school, I wanted to go to a place where I could get a great education and play softball,” stated Bilotta. “And I have been able to do both here at Wesleyan. It is an all-around great place to receive your education. The faculty members are great. The professors have always been there for me and they want you to do well. The Business department is one reason why I love this college so much. Professors like Scott Bellamy or Michael Ervin are outstanding teachers that are interested in seeing us succeed as students. There has never been any second-guessing about my decision to come here.”

Bilotta, who is a major in accounting and economics, will graduate in the spring of 2007. She plans to pursue her master’s in accounting following graduation and one day hopes to have her own accounting firm. “It has always been a dream of mine,” she concluded. “The future is always wide open, but I know that my Wesleyan education has given me a great first step in the real world.”