WORCESTER, Mass. – On the evening of Monday, April 30 Worcester State University's student-athletes, coaches, administrators and board of trustees gathered in the Lancer Gymnasium to recognize the accomplishments of the Lancer student-athletes at the annual Athletic Awards Ceremony.
The night began with hors d'oeuvres and refreshments along the walking track inside the gymnasium. The student-athletes were able to socialize with their teammates, friends, coaches and administration.
Following that, everyone settled into their seats and the ceremony opened with a presentation of the 2018 Worcester State Athletics senior class, presented by Worcester State Director of Athletics, Michael Mudd, and Worcester State's Deputy Director of Athletics, John Meany.
Worcester State University President, Barry M. Maloney, spoke to the crowd and commended the student-athletes for their hard work and efforts on and off the field. Worcester State's Athletic Director, Mudd, followed and spoke of the accomplishments of our student-athletes and coaches, and thanked parents, coaches and administrators for their support.
After opening remarks from both Maloney and Mudd, Worcester State University's Associate Athletic Director, Karen Tessmer, and Coordinator of Student-Athlete Support Services, Kelly Downs, took the stage to recognize the student-athletes who have excelled academically. Tessmer spoke of research projects that the student-athletes have completed, and recognized Worcester State Academic Achievers.
Downs took the platform to honor the seniors of Worcester State's "Chi Alpha Sigma" student-athlete honor society. The senior recipients were: Jason Barrett, Justine Butler, Kayla Corcoran, Sean Corcoran, Abigail Danso, Eric Davis, Matthew Dent, Sydney Despres, Kyle Griffin, Brianna Hackett, Alexa Harvey, Anna Haynes, Ashleigh Howland, Marques Johnson, Rachel Lauzon, Devin Luce, Daniel Orlando, Edmond Peladeau, Megan Rouillard, Lindsay Ryan, Kathryn Salemme, Stephen Smialek, Dakota Smith-Porter, Beth Spinazzola, Jolane Thibualt, Christopher Walles.
A recognition of Worcester State's All-Conference student-athletes, Worcester State All-Americans (Michaila Parent, Hayley Sutherland, Jacob Maher, Justin Lewis and Marcus Vieira), MASCAC Championship teams (women's cross country, field hockey, women's soccer, women's volleyball and softball), and coaches of the year (Alexa Carlson of field hockey, Bernie Chase of women's volleyball) were recognized by Assistant Athletic Director, Dave Lindberg, before getting to the major awards.
The Rookie of the Year award was presented to two males and female who had outstanding accolades in their first year with Worcester State. Jake Breton (Wilbraham, Mass.) of the baseball team and Tim Drevitch (Oxford, N.J.) of the men's ice hockey team were male recipients, while women's track & field student-athlete Asgerdur Jana Agustsdottir (Akureyi, Iceland) was the female recipient.
Worcester State acknowledged the most outstanding male/female student athlete of the 2017-18 academic year with the Athlete of the Year Award. The two recipients of this award were football All-American Jacob Maher (Marshfield, Mass.) and field hockey All-American Michaila Parent (Westborough, Mass.).
The Rich Korzec Service Award was presented to Worcester State's Alex Dalelio (Lynnfield, Mass.) who was a member of the men's cross country team, is a team manager of the men's track & field team and is a student-worker for the Worcester State Athletic Department. He was honored for his dedication, hard work and contribution to the athletic department.
The next award was the Blue and Gold Award which was given to a senior student-athlete who has overcome severe adversity to continue their playing career and have success in action. This year's recipient was Beth Spinazzola (Westford, Mass.) of the women's soccer team.
The next three awards were for the seniors and their accomplishments throughout their career at Worcester State.
First, was the Lancer Award, who is awarded to a male and female who exemplified dedication to their program, leadership qualities, and good sportsmanship. The recipients of this award included Maligie Kallon (Lowell, Mass.) of the football team, Alex Pommerville (Macedon, N.Y.) of the men's ice hockey team and Hayley Sutherland of the field hockey and women's lacrosse teams.
Next, was the Margaret "Peg" Nugent Scholar Athlete Award who was awarded to a male and a female who showed outstanding performance not only out on the field or on the ice, but also in the classroom with exceptional GPA's. Chris Walles (Feeding Hills, Mass.) of the football team was the male recipient, while Justine Butler (Marlborough, Mass.) of the women's soccer team was the female honoree.
The last award of the night was the Robert Devlin Senior Athlete of the Year. This award was given out to a male and female who showed outstanding performance and achievement throughout the course of their career at Worcester State. The male recipient of this award was Matthew Dent (Ludlow, Mass.) of the men's soccer team. The female recipient of this award was Sydney Despres (Sterling, Mass.) of the softball team.
2017-18 Athletic Awards Ceremony
