SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts - A total of 18 student-athletes, four staff members, and one team were recognized for their outstanding contributions to the success of the American International College Department of Athletics at the 2023-24 Athletics Awards Night held in the Butova Gymnasium on Wednesday, April 24.

AIC's Student Athlete Advisory Committee presented a number of awards, beginning with the Team SWARM Award to recognize the team "that has been the most supportive of their fellow Yellow Jackets throughout the year." The winning team was the women's rugby team.

The Coaching Staff of the Year Award was earned by Director of Volleyball Matthew Cribbin and Assistant Coach Tyler Wingate of women's volleyball as "the coaching staff which has been #AICommitted to the holistic success of their student-athletes in competition, the classroom, and the community." Presenting the award was women's volleyball senior and SAAC Senior Representative Paola Soto-Burgos.

SAAC also recognized its Mentor of the Year Award winner, "presented to a team mentor whose pride in the Yellow Jackets has led them to contribute to the success of our student-athletes both in the classroom and competition." The winner was Associate Professor of Mathematics James Sansalone '81 MAT, who has been teaching at the College for 42 years and attends and photographs numerous sporting events for the student-athletes. Sansalone is the Staff/Faculty Mentor for women's basketball, and was presented with the award by team co-captains Kayla Robinson, AJ Washington, and Nora Young.

The SAAC Strength and Conditioning Award, presented by Strength and Conditioning Coordinator Mike Dance, was given to the male and female student-athletes "who have shown consistent work ethic and improvement in the weight room." Brett Callahan of ice hockey and Morgan Martellio of field hockey and women's track and field were the honorees.

The Play of the Year was selected via a vote by student-athletes on the AIC Athletics Instagram account; eight key plays were nominated, and the winner was the home-court clinching three-point shot hit by Tia-Marie Martinez for women's basketball against Saint Anselm College.

The final SAAC Award, the Individual SWARM Award was presented by Martellio, the current SAAC Vice President, to outgoing Director of Athletics Jessica Chapin. The Individual SWARM Award is "presented to the person who has made an outstanding contribution to the success of AIC Athletics as a whole through their dedication to AIC." In addition to winning the award, Martellio announced that the award would be renamed the Jessica Chapin Award, to forever honor Chapin's efforts in leading the department in her decade at the College.

A new award was the first departmental award presented. Rex's Rookie of the Year honored "the male and female student-athletes who have made the biggest impact in their first season of collegiate competition." Head Football Coach Lou Conte, having just completed his own rookie campaign as the program's leader, presented the award to Ries Bower of men's lacrosse and Brooklyn Cividanes of softball. Bower set the AIC, Northeast-10 Conference, and NCAA Division II records for caused turnovers in a season with 58, while Cividanes, as of the time of the awards ceremony, is second in the Northeast-10 Conference among all players with a .515 on-base percentage.

The Alumni Award, presented to the male and female senior-student athletes "who excel in academic scholarship and athletic achievement," was presented by Head Men's Soccer Coach Jake Durham '20, '22 MBA. Briana Lee of women's basketball and Lucas Morales-Fernandez of men's soccer were the winners. Lee was a WBCA All-American in 2023-24 for AIC and was among the NE10 leaders in scoring, rebounding, and steals, while Morales-Fernandez rewrote the record books for the men's soccer team in three full seasons as the team's starting keeper, including shutting out eventual national champion Franklin Pierce University for 110 minutes in the NE10 Quarterfinal to break the Ravens' winning streak that had lasted over a year.

The Milton J. Piepul Merit Medal, named after the longtime football coach and athletic director at AIC, is given to a male and female senior "who combines excellence on the field with excellence in the classroom, including maintaining a 3.5 GPA or higher." Faculty Athletics Representative Jill McCarthy Payne presented the awards to Leya Vohra of women's soccer and Brian Kramer of ice hockey. Vohra, a team captain, helped lead AIC to the NE10 Tournament with strong play on defense, while Kramer was the AHA Defenseman of the Year and co-captained the ice hockey team to its fourth AHA Championship Game appearance in five seasons.

The Lt. Alvin J. Carocari Scholarship Award, named after the AIC alumnus who lost his life in service to the United States Navy during the Second World War, "is presented to the male and female student-athletes who have made oustanding contributions to intercollegiate athletics at AIC." Head Acrobatics and Tumbling Coach Patrick McFarlin presented the awards to men's cross country and track's Sadadine Adam and women's rugby's Venise Sanft. Adam was a national qualifier for the NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championship after earning All-Conference and All-Region honors, while Sanft was named to the All-NIRA Team as a fullback for her outstanding play in helping women's rugby reach the NIRA Semifinal.

The Robert Burke Athletic Director's Award, named for the legendary administrator, "recognizes community service and oustanding performance or competitive improvement over an athletic career." Presented by Coordinator of Athletic Communications Seth Dussault, the awards were earned by football's Sidiki Kone and field hockey's Taylor Wildes. Kone earned NE10 All-Conference accolades as the team's starting running back while helping to lead a variety of community service efforts for the football team and co-founding AIC's Muslim Student Organization. Wildes was an NFHCA Senior All-Star and spearheads AIC's involvement with Team IMPACT while also serving as Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant. 

The Yellow Jacket of the Year Award "is presented to the male and female student-athlete who best exemplifies AIC in character, talent, and spirit." The award, presented by Head Golf Coach John Jackson, went to baseball's Jackson Haker and to Soto-Burgos. Haker was a First-Team All-Region selection in 2023 and is tracking to repeat as he is in the top seven in both batting average and on-base percentage in the NE10. Soto-Burgos led AIC to another NE10 and NCAA Tournament appearance and earned her second consecutive AVCA All-American honor. Both are members of the SAAC Executive Board, with Haker serving as Fundraising Coordinator.

The President's Cup "recognizes the top male and female student-athlete in the academic year." Head Softball Coach Shalise Tolentino presented the awards to men's basketball's Justice Ellison and women's volleyball's Aleksandra Ivanovic. Ellison dominated the NE10 as the leading scorer in the conference, reaching his 1000th career point as just a sophomore on his way to earning First-Team All-Region and First-Team All-Conference honors. Ivanovic dominated her competition with the second highest attack percentage in all of NCAA Division II and garnered her first AVCA All-American accolade. 

The final award of the night to be given was the F.J. Maloney Award. First given in 1941, the award "is presented to the most outstanding male and female athletes for four years at AIC." Cribbin presented these to Callahan and to Abigail Wells of softball. Callahan, who co-captained the ice hockey team this season, was a stalwart on the blueline for five seasons, scoring 43 points in 113 games and helping AIC to three AHA Championships. Wells is in her final season, and has been a four-year starter in center field, earning NE10 All-Conference honors as a sophomore and posting a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in 2024 to this point.