Stillwater Area High School senior Joe Hoheisel was awarded the 12th annual Ponies Touchdown Club Scholarship. The award ceremony took place on Monday, May 6, 2024 in the auditorium. Hoheisel received an individual award and his name will be engraved on a plaque which hangs in the athletic hallway. Previous recipients include Aaron Romportl (2013), Jake Olson (2014), Nick Johnson (2015), Kevin Jones (2016 four-year) and Josh Wille (2016 two-year), Ben Peterson (2017), Charlie Richman (2018 four-year) and Carl Tomlinson (2018 two-year), Will Gleason (2019), Trey Kruse (2020), Ian Hanlon (2021), Austin Buck (2022), and Tom Blair (2023). In 12 years, the PTC has awarded $14,000 to college-bound alumni.

The Ponies Touchdown Club Scholarship, created in 2012, recognizes superior, holistic achievement as a student-athlete with special emphasis placed on contribution to the Stillwater Ponies football program.

First, the student-athlete is regarded as someone who invested thoroughly in academics, athletics and activities, and community service. The recipient is well-rounded, and has gained a diverse, co-curricular education. The recipient shares their time and talent generously and believes “giving is receiving.”

Second, the student-athlete has made a significant impact on the football program while using the experience to become a better person. The player promoted, influenced, and furthered the objectives of the program, which include having fun, growing as a person, representing our school and community with class, and helping us become the best team possible. The Ponies Touchdown Club Scholarship recipient is an ideal representative of the Stillwater Ponies football program.

Hoheisel became an impact player from his first varsity play - the first offensive play of the 2021 season. Junior quarterback Max Shikenjanski connected with Hoheisel, a sophomore wide receiver, for a 39-yard completion. The first of what would be a career school record of 111 receptions to go with a school record for catches in a season (56 in 2023).

“The moment was never too big for Joe,” said Ponies Head Coach Beau LaBore. “For three years Joe used a combination of size, speed, and reliable hands to make a lot of plays.”

The Ponies have enjoyed success with the Class of 2024 seniors and Hoheisel, including three sub-district championships and two section championships. The experience has been profound for Hoheisel.

“Football affected me in a way no other activity made me think twice about,” Hoheisel said. “This thing I’m mentioning is the appreciation for a sense of community. Whether that's through giving back to the people who are in it, or having a whole group of guys working towards the same objective, or even all the people coming together to watch and support each other. All these facets of a community football generates formulated my comprehension of how irreplaceable it is to experience that bond between so many people.”

Hoheisel was a two-time All-District performer and earned Academic All-State honors, just one of 18 players state-wide in Class 6A to do so. Hoheisel, who will attend Creighton University this fall, accumulated a 4.0 GPA while taking a some of the most challenging classes at SAHS including Human Anatomy and Medical Terminology, AP Geography, AP Calculus, AP Psychology, AP Microeconomics, AP Statistics, and CIS Human Physiology.

Hoheisel was also awarded the Coach Wes Windmiller Scholarship, which is dedicated to a graduating basketball player. Off the field he served others through the Pony Youth Camp, VAA Football, Adaptive Football Day, the food drive, Tackle Cancer, and more.

“The accumulation of all these enlightening lessons and experiences football has allowed me means a great deal because it inspires me to continue the excellence of what an athlete, student, friend, brother, and son looks like,” said Hoheisel.

Other Ponies football players earning scholarships include John Halley, Luke Mace, Zach Nelson, Ethan Stabenow, Shawn Stephens, Cameron Winters, and Sam Young.

The 2023 regular season has concluded with the Ponies atop the Metro East Sub-District at 5-0. This includes four fourth quarter come from behind victories. Overall, the Red and Black finished 6-2. The championship is the program’s fourth straight sub-district title, 26th conference or sub-district championship all-time, and the first time they have won four in a row since capturing five straight from 1992 to 1996.

Stillwater earned one of the four number one seeds in the Class 6A Playoffs. The Ponies seek a repeat trip to the State Tournament.