2010-11 C-Club Senior Athletes of the Year Chris DeLuca (men's lacrosse) (second from left) and Donnalyn Cross (softball) (second from right) with Cortland Director of Athletics Mike Urtz and C-Club President Karen Funk
The 2011 SUNY Cortland C-Club Athletic Awards Ceremony, held May 9 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.
The SUNY Cortland C-Club Male Senior Athlete of the Year Award was presented to men's lacrosse midfielder Chris DeLuca (Sayville) and the C-Club Female Senior Athlete of the Year Award was given to softball second baseman Donnalyn Cross (Binghamton/Chenango Valley). The awards were sponsored by the C-Club and were voted upon by Cortland athletic administrators.
DeLuca was the USILA Div. III national Player of the Year and a first team All-American as a junior in 2010. He also earned ECAC Upstate New York Offensive Player of the Year honors and was the New York State and State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Player of the Year that season. In addition, DeLuca was an honorable mention All-American as a sophomore.
Cross was a first-team All-American as both a sophomore and junior. She earned ECAC and SUNYAC Player of the Year honors in 2010 and was the SUNYAC Co-Player of the Year in 2009. Cross is Cortland's career leader with 249 hits, 39 triples and 70 stolen bases entering the 2011 NCAA Div. III regionals.
Other finalists for Male Senior Athlete of the Year were track and field sprinter Gino Bisceglia (Norwood/Norwood-Norfolk), football cornerback Joe Lopez (Port Jefferson Station/Comsewogue), baseball pitcher Travis Ratliff (Levittown/Division Avenue) and wrestler Aljamain Sterling (Uniondale). Other Female Senior Athlete of the Year finalists were basketball forward Jennifer Patten (Bainbridge/Bainbridge-Guilford), field hockey back Brenda Semit (Holland Patent), track and field high jumper Kristen Serikstad (Oyster Bay) and softball outfielder Brooke Weidman (Wayland/Wayland-Cohocton).
Semit received the M. Louise Moseley Award, which goes to a senior female athlete who has demonstrated both strong leadership skills and athletic achievement. Semit was a first team field hockey All-American as both a junior and senior and ranks eighth in school history with 108 points (39 goals, 30 assists). 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.
Lopez received the Carl "Chugger" Davis Award, which is given to a senior male athlete for strong leadership skills and athletic achievement. Lopez earned All-America honors last fall after tying a school single-season record with eight interceptions and setting a new school mark with an interception in six consecutive games. Davis was Cortland's head football coach from 1932 to 1962 and also coached baseball, basketball and golf.
Women's golfer Meghan Brunswick (Oneonta) earned the Whitney T. Corey '43 Award, which is presented to the senior female student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade point average. Brunswick is a bio-medical sciences major with a 3.94 overall GPA entering the spring semester. Men's soccer player Steve Bartkowski (Buffalo/Kenmore East) won the Robert J. Weber Award as the senior male student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade point average. Bartkowski is a sport management major with a 3.63 GPA prior to 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. 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.
Junior softball catcher Rachel Barry (Seaford/General Douglas MacArthur) received 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. Barry is the president of Cortland's Student Athlete Advisory Committee, is involved in Adapted Physical Education Labs on campus, and was the team leader for Relay for Life and Adopt a Family initiatives that involved the softball team.
The 15th annual C-Club Coach of the Year Award was presented to softball head coach Julie Lenhart, who has led her team to a current record of 36-3-1, a State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) title and a top seed in the upcoming NCAA Div. III regional at Cortland.
Tracy Granozio, Cortland's assistant director of athletics, was chosen as the Fraser Stokes Award winner for her dedication and service to Cortland athletics. 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 men's soccer team (2.96 GPA) claimed the men's award and the softball team (3.27 GPA) was the women's winner. The award was first given in 2003.
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 2010-11 Red Letter Award winners, by sport, are as follows:
Baseball: Travis Ratliff, Sr. (Levittown/Division Avenue)
Men's Basketball: Jesse Winter, So. (Rockville Centre/South Side)
Women's Basketball: Jen Polan, Sr. (Westhampton/Westhampton Beach)
Men's Cross Country: Brendan Ward, Jr. (St. James/Smithtown East)
Women's Cross Country: Erin Keaveney, Sr. (West Hempstead/Kellenberg Memorial)
Field Hockey: Brenda Semit, Sr. (Holland Patent)
Football: Eddie Spillett, Sr. (Holtsville/Sachem East)
Women's Golf: Hollie Petrus, Sr. (Lowville/Lowville Academy)
Women's Gymnastics: Sarah Nadrowski, So. (Tonawanda/Kenmore East)
Men's Ice Hockey: Jarrett Gold, Sr. (East Setauket/Ward Melville)
Women's Ice Hockey: Meghan Ward, Sr. (Buffalo/Mt. St. Mary Academy)
Women's Tennis: Loraine Jelinek, So. (Homer/HomeSchool)
Men's Indoor Track and Field: # Gino Bisceglia, Sr. (Norwood/Norwood-Norfolk)
Women's Indoor Track and Field: $ Alyson Dalton, Jr. (Sherrill/Vernon-Verona-Sherrill)
Men's Outdoor Track and Field: Ryan Pericozzi, Jr. (Lancaster)
Women's Outdoor Track and Field: % Kristen Serikstad, Gr. (Oyster Bay)
Men's Lacrosse: Jay DiStefano, Sr. (Huntington/Harborfields)
Women's Lacrosse: Melissa Kane, Sr. (Syracuse/Cicero-North Syracuse)
Men's Soccer: Steve Bartkowski, Sr. (Buffalo/Kenmore East)
Women's Soccer: Bridgette DeSantis, Jr. (Rotterdam/Mohonasen)
Softball: Katie Fusco, Sr. (Lake Ronkonkoma/Sachem North)
Men's Swimming and Diving: Matt Distler, Fr. (Glens Falls)
Women's Swimming and Diving: Jessica Evans, So. (Hamburg)
Women's Volleyball: Kristen Guercio, So. (Smithtown/Smithtown East)
Wrestling: Dave Colagiovanni, Sr. (Mahopac)
# also won award in 2009-10
$ also won women's outdoor track and field award in 2009-10
% also won women's indoor track and field award in 2007-08 and 2008-09
(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)
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