Matas Piktuizis '25 and Emily Baxter '27 have been awarded March 2025's Student-Athletes of the Month.
EMILY BAXTER
As a sophomore for the Culver Girls Academy (CGA) Track and Field team, Emily Baxter has already made her mark in school history.
During the 2025 indoor season, Baxter set two CGA indoor records.
At the West Lafayette Individuals state qualifier meet, she finished the 800-meter run in 2 minutes, 17.45 seconds.
She followed that up by setting a second school record in the indoor 440-yard dash at the final home meet, clocking in at 1:02.8.
As a freshman last year, Baxter set the outdoor 400-meter school record with a 58.99 and competed as a member of the state-qualifying 4x400m relay team.
"Emily is one of the strongest, hard-working, and focused athletes we have coached at Culver," coach Ramsey Bradke said.
Bradke said Baxter embodies the style of leadership and athleticism they aim for within CGA Track and Field.
"She is humble and cares about her teammate's success and well-being, just as much as she cares about her individual performance," he said.
Looking ahead to the 2025 outdoor season, Baxter will compete in the 200m, 400m, and 800m and the 4x400m and 4x800m relay teams.
Bradke sees a high ceiling for Baxter and says she remains focused on training and competing at a high level.
"We believe she will have an excellent season," he said. "We expect that she will continue to be coachable, set goals for herself, and give her best competitive efforts—which she always does."
MATAS PIKTUIZIS
As a two-year starter for the Culver Military Academy (CMA) varsity basketball team, Matas Piktuizis played a significant role in the team's success.
"Matas had a productive season as illustrated by his statistics for February," coach Mark Galloway said.
Piktuizis averaged 10.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game.
In the same month, Piktuizis received an IHSAA Exemplary Behavior Report for his outstanding display of sportsmanship—an embodiment of the core values of IHSAA basketball.
A referee said, "Matas Piktuizis stood out for his outstanding sportsmanship. His positive approach was evident not only in his interactions with teammates and opponents but also with the officiating crew."
In March, Piktuizis helped lead his team to the IHSAA sectional championship finals.
The Eagles played a hard-fought game but came up short, falling to South Bend St. Joseph High School, 45-47, who then went on to win the 3A state championship.
Earlier in the season, CMA had also narrowly lost to the eventual champions by just one point in overtime.
Instead of focusing on his individual performance, Galloway said Piktuizis would rather point to the team's accomplishments, as he is 'the consummate team player.'
"He exudes our program's guiding principle: 'Great teams have great teammates,'" Galloway said. "For two years, Matas served his teammates without reservation. The coaching staff would like to celebrate his development as a player and teammate but also thank him for his commitment to others."
Congratulations to our March 2025 Student-Athletes of the Month!
