05/03/2016
The 2016 SUNY Cortland C-Club Athletic Awards Ceremony, held May 2 at the College's Alumni Arena, honored the top student-athletes from among the 600-plus who competed on Cortland's 25 men's and women's intercollegiate teams during the past academic year.
 |
|
2015-16 Cortland Red Letter Award Winners: Front Row (left to right): Miranda Fergus (women's swimming and diving), Michaela Stumpf (women's gymnastics), Mitch Ryan (men's cross country), Kerri Culhane (women's cross country), Kayla Koelbel (women's indoor track and field), Ella Neville (women's soccer), Mia Hayes (women's tennis) Middle Row (left to right): Jamie Bucci (softball), Nicole Bello (women's lacrosse), Lou Puca (wrestling), Jarred Iacovelli (men's outdoor track and field), Madison Fischl (women's ice hockey), Drew Weigman (men's ice hockey), Sara O'Brien (field hockey), Carly Peters (women's golf) Back Row (left to right): Blair Estarfaa (men's basketball), Joe Brand (men's lacrosse), Devonte Davis (football), Robby Reiser (men's soccer), Reeve Callen (men's swimming and diving), Keith Andrews (baseball), Connor Christopherson (men's indoor track and field), Caysea Cohen (women's basketball) Not present: Amanda May (women's volleyball) and Hannah Anthes (women's outdoor track and field) |
The SUNY Cortland C-Club Male Senior Athlete of the Year Award was presented to wrestler Joe Giaramita (Elwood/John H. Glenn) and the C-Club Female Senior Athlete of the Year Award was presented to women's lacrosse midfielder Tara Monaghan (Stony Point/North Rockland). The awards are sponsored by the C-Club and were voted upon by Cortland athletic administrators.
Giaramita won the 2015 NCAA Division III wrestling title at 197 pounds and finished as only the second four-time All-American in Cortland wrestling history. He graduates as Cortland's career wins leader with an overall mark of 129-26 with 32 pins.
Monaghan, through May 2, ranks third in Cortland women's lacrosse history with 216 career goals, third with 291 draw controls, and seventh with 252 total points. She leads the undefeated and top-ranked Red Dragons this spring with 60 goals and 34 ground balls.
Other finalists for Male Senior Athlete of the Year were football defensive end Jake Ceresna (New Fairfield, CT), basketball guard Blair Estarfaa (Buffalo/Maryvale), lacrosse attack Zach Hopps (Akwesasne/Massena), wrestler Lou Puca (Huntington) and baseball outfielder Conrad Ziemendorf (Penfield/Webster Schroeder). Other Female Senior Athlete of the Year finalists were track and field/cross country runner Kailyn Balzano (East Greenbush/Columbia), softball outfielder Diane Cork (Wayland/Wayland-Cohocton), diver Miranda Fergus (Millbrook), lacrosse midfielder Ashley Gentile (Baldwinsville/C.W. Baker), and gymnast Maddy Scozzie (Ashburn, VA/Broad Run).
For the first time, the College recognized the Male and Female Freshman Athletes of the Year. The men's winner was wrestler Austin Whitney (Mexico/Mexico Academy), who finished the season 34-9 and was the Empire Collegiate Wrestling Conference Rookie of the Year. The women's winner was field hockey goalie Kailynne Reinoehl (Lititz, PA/Warwick), who earned all-region honors and was the SUNYAC Rookie of the Year after posting a 14-5 record and 0.93 goals-against average.
The Freshman of the Year awards were limited to "true" freshmen in their first year in college. The other men's finalists were track and field multi athlete Brent DiVittorio (Brewster) and lacrosse midfielder Joey Panariello (Islip), while the other women's finalists were gymnast Rachel Filipski (Lancaster) and lacrosse midfielder Carly Stone (Syracuse/Jamesville-DeWitt).
Ceresna received the Carl "Chugger" Davis Award, which is given to a senior male athlete for strong leadership skills and athletic achievement. Ceresna recorded 142 career tackles, including 14.5 sacks, during his three seasons with the Red Dragons. Davis was Cortland's head football coach from 1932 to 1962 and also coached baseball, basketball and golf.
Gentile received the M. Louise Moseley Award, which goes to a senior female athlete who has demonstrated both strong leadership skills and athletic achievement. Gentile, through May 2, has scored 158 career goals and ranks fifth at Cortland with 227 career draw controls. Moseley was Cortland's Director of Women's Athletics from 1966-78. A pioneer for women's athletics, she played an integral role in the start of women's intercollegiate athletics at Cortland in the late 1960s. Moseley passed away this past December at age 91.
Scozzie earned the Whitney T. Corey '43 Award, which is presented to the senior female student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade point average. Scozzie is a childhood education major with a 4.04 overall GPA entering the spring semester. Corey coached men's basketball at Cortland in the 1950s and early 1960s and also served as the school's vice president for academic affairs. The main gymnasium in Cortland's Park Center bears his name.
Baseball second baseman Connor Griffin (Cortland) won the Robert J. Weber Award as the senior male student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade point average. Griffin is a sport management major with a 3.91 overall GPA prior to the spring semester. Weber was Cortland's director of athletics for 12 years and the Chairman of the Men's Physical Education department for 15 years. He worked at Cortland from 1952-85.
Tim Beauvais won the Peter J. Cahill '66 Award. The award, named for Cortland's former swimming and diving and women's tennis head coach, is presented to either a current student-athlete for involvement in activities outside of sports or to a current non-athlete student for contributions to the Athletics Department. Beauvais, a native of Hilton, N.Y., is currently the graduate assistant in the school's sports information department and also serves as an assistant director with Cortland's summer sports camps.
The 20th annual C-Club Coach of the Year Award was shared by women's lacrosse head coach Kelly Lickert-Orr and baseball head coach Joe Brown. Both coaches led their teams to NCAA Division III titles in the spring of 2015, and both of their squads are currently ranked first nationally this spring (women's lacrosse is 16-0 and baseball is 34-5 as of May 2).
Dan Dryja was chosen as the Fraser Stokes Award winner for his dedication and service to Cortland Athletics. Dryja is the Head Grounds Supervisor for College's Grounds Department. His tireless work has helped Cortland maintain some of the top sports facilities in Division III.
The Judson and Elise Taylor Team GPA Awards, named after the former SUNY Cortland president and his wife, were presented to the men's and women's athletic teams with the highest cumulative grade point averages. The baseball team won the men's award for first time since the award originated in 2003. The women's award was shared by the gymnastics and tennis teams. Gymnastics won the honor for the third straight year and fourth time overall, while tennis earned the honor for the first time.
Also at the ceremony, Director of Athletics Mike Urtz recognized the baseball and women's lacrosse teams for their 2015 national titles, which occurred after last year's ceremony, as well as recognizing Bobby Dierna, who was the NCAA Division III 157-pound wrestling champion this past March.
Urtz also honored long-time Cortland field hockey coach Cynthia Wetmore, who recently announced her retirement. And to close the banquet, Cortland's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) aired an "It's On Us" video that they produced and that featured players from each of Cortland's teams. The video promotes student-athletes, and others, playing an active role to stop sexual assault.
Each year, the Cortland head coaches select a Red Letter Award winner in their respective sports. The Red Letter may be given for outstanding athletic skills, team leadership, personal development as a player, or for any combination of reasons. The 2015-16 Red Letter Award winners, by sport, are as follows:
Baseball: Keith Andrews, Sr. (East Northport/Commack)
Men's Basketball: Blair Estarfaa, Sr. (Buffalo/Maryvale)
Women's Basketball: Caysea Cohen, Sr. (Stony Brook/Ward Melville)
Men's Cross Country: Mitch Ryan, Jr. (Plattsburgh/Seton Catholic)
Women's Cross Country: Kerri Culhane, Sr. (Sayville)
Field Hockey: Sara O'Brien, Sr. (Amherst)
Football: Devonte Davis, Sr. (Buffalo/Cleveland Hill)
Women's Golf: Carly Peters, Sr. (St. James/Smithtown East)
Women's Gymnastics: Michaela Stumpf, Jr. (Williamsville/Williamsville South)
Men's Ice Hockey: Drew Weigman, So. (Gaithersburg, MD/DeMatha Catholic)
Women's Ice Hockey: Madison Fischl, Sr. (Basking Ridge, NJ/Ridge)
Men's Lacrosse: Joe Brand, Sr. (Long Beach)
Women's Lacrosse: Nicole Bello, Sr. (Camillus/West Genesee)
Men's Soccer: Robby Reiser, Sr. (Melville/Half Hollow Hills East)
Women's Soccer: Ella Neville, So. (Syracuse/Nottingham)
Softball: Jamie Bucci, Sr. (Tarrytown/Sleepy Hollow)
Men's Swimming and Diving: $ Reeve Callen, Sr. (Oswego)
Women's Swimming and Diving: Miranda Fergus, Sr. (Millbrook)
Women's Tennis: Mia Hayes, Fr. (Binghamton/Chenango Forks)
Men's Indoor Track and Field: Connor Christopherson, Jr. (Morrisonville/Saranac)
Women's Indoor Track and Field: # Kayla Koelbel, Sr. (Bradford, PA/Kings Park (NY))
Men's Outdoor Track and Field: # Jarred Iacovelli, Sr. (Manahawkin, NJ/Southern Regional)
Women's Outdoor Track and Field: Hannah Anthes, Gr. (Liverpool)
Women's Volleyball: Amanda May, So. (Baldwinsville/C.W. Baker)
Wrestling: Lou Puca, Sr. (Huntington)
# also won award in 2014-15
$ also won award in 2013-14
Also recognized at the ceremony were Cortland's student-athletes who were selected to the Chi Alpha Sigma National College Athlete Honor Society. The organization recognizes college student-athletes who are juniors or seniors with at least a 3.7 cumulative GPA on a 4.3 scale. Cortland's 2015-16 honorees were:
Makenzie Annable (Navarino/Onondaga) - Women's Lacrosse
Luke Barnes (Waterville) - Men's Track and Field
Mary Baughman (Rush/Rush-Henrietta) - Women's Cross Country and Track and Field
Marley Bender (Riverside, CA/Woodcrest Christian) - Women's Gymnastics
Kayla Blomback (Orchard Park) - Women's Cross Country and Track and Field
Vanessa Carmesin (Leverkusen, Germany/Landrat-Lucas Gymnasium) - Women's Volleyball
Elise Cusimano (Falconer) - Women's Tennis
Samantha Czeczotka (Elwood/John H. Glenn) - Women's Volleyball
David Foster (Farmingville/Sachem East) - Men's Lacrosse
Casie Garrison (Cortland/Homer) - Men's Ice Hockey
Meghan Goyden (Endwell/Maine-Endwell) - Women's Gymnastics
Connor Griffin (Cortland) - Baseball
Stephanie Heresniak (Woolwich Township, NJ/Paul VI) - Women's Ice Hockey
Travis Laitar (Fergus, ON/Centre Wellington) - Baseball
Emily McGurk (Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury) - Women's Swimming and Diving
Whitney Mietz (Rochester/Brighton) - Women's Swimming and Diving
Marlon Montini (Cologne, Germany/Gymnasium Horn) - Men's Soccer
Emily Nagy (Merrimack, NH) - Women's Gymnastics
Hauke Nehrhoff (Cologne, Germany/Gymnasium Obervieland) - Men's Soccer
Allison Schumann (North Salem) - Women's Cross Country and Track and Field
Maddy Scozzie (Ashburn, VA/Broad Run) - Women's Gymnastics
Tara Sweeney (Staten Island/Notre Dame Academy) - Women's Gymnastics
(For information about individual award winners, please contact Cortland Sports Information Director Fran Elia at (607) 753-5673 or by e-mail at eliaf@cortland.edu)
Banquet Award Winners (since 1988)