Endicott Athletics Celebrates 2018-19 Season With Annual Student-Athlete Recognition Ceremony

BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott Athletics and Recreation Department recognized and celebrated the academic and athletic accomplishments of its student-athletes during the 2018-19 academic year on Monday, May 13 with its annual student-athlete recognition ceremony inside MacDonald Gymnasium.

Highlighting the evening was the announcement of the department's four major award winners.

Women's ice hockey student-athlete Vendela Jonsson (Linkoping, Sweden) was named the Female Athlete of the Year, while men's volleyball student-athlete Bryn Lipton (Rockford, Ill.) received Male Athlete of the Year honors.

Alongside the Male and Female Athlete of the Year award winners were men's ice hockey student-athlete Josh Bowes (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) and women's cross country/track and field student-athlete Abigail Keim (Williston, Vt.) who claimed Male and Female Student-Athlete of the Year accolades, respectively.

In addition to the four major awards that were given out on Monday night, Endicott College Assistant Vice President, Director of Athletics Brian Wylie, Ph.D. and the rest of the department staff handed out several other awards including: the Coaches' Awards, the Athletic Training Student of the Year Award, two Strength and Conditioning Iron Beak honors, the Northwestern Mutual Community Service Award, and the Outstanding Club Athlete Awards.

Winners for the Coaches' Awards were Liam Burke (Baseball), Hannah Wilson (Cheerleading), Erica DeDonato (Dance), Abbigale Gerrish (Equestrian), Julie Champigny (Field Hockey), Matthew Acierno (Football), Dylan Seeber (Men's Golf), John Homsey (Men's Basketball), Olivia Duncan (Women's Basketball), Addison Culupa (Men's Crew), Kendra Kirby (Women's Crew), Will Connelly (Men's Cross Country), Aleah MacKay (Women's Cross Country), Carter Horwitz (Men's Ice Hockey), Alyssa Peterson (Women's Ice Hockey), Mike Spence (Men's Lacrosse), Erin Gill (Women's Lacrosse), Bryan Palmatier (Men's Rugby), Casey Joyce (Women's Rugby), Steven Avery (Men's Soccer), Mary Verneris (Women's Soccer), Christos Papadopoulos (Men's Tennis), Emily Licciardi (Women's Tennis), Seth Braquet (Men's Volleyball), Emily Diezemann (Women's Volleyball), Corey Eisenband (Roller Hockey), KK Palmerino (Softball), and Taylor Papa (Women's Track and Field).

Meanwhile, winners of the remaining awards included Kelsey O'Keefe (Northwestern Mutual Community Service Award), Nicole McCardle (Female Club Athlete of the Year), Corey Eisenband (Male Club Athlete of the Year), Emma Tierney and Dan Williams (Strength & Conditioning Iron Beak Awards), and Maggie Johnson (Athletic Training Student-Athlete of the Year).

Lastly, in honor of his indelible contributions and support of Endicott athletics, the late Dr. Richard E. Wylie was recognized with the David H. Cammett Award.

The David H. Cammett Award recognizes an individual in the Endicott Community that embodies the essence of supporting our student-athletes. David Cammett was a pillar during the early developmental stages of Endicott athletics where he would be at almost every game; cheering on our student-athletes. He was quick to point out if a student-athlete was not carrying themselves the right way, and he would never mince his words in his criticisms. And though his compliments were not heard as often as his criticisms, when a student did hear a compliment, they would cherish it.

VENDELA JONSSON | SENIOR | WOMEN'S ICE HOCKEY | FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

Jonsson was a major contributor in Endicott's 2018-19 Colonial Hockey Conference (CHC) championship run as the senior goaltender posted an 11-4-4 record, a 1.17 goals against average (seven shutouts), and a .950 save percentage in 19 games played (1174:52). Among conference goaltenders, Jonsson led the league in goals against (23), goals against average (1.17) and winning percentage (.684), while she also ranked sixth in saves (435), second in save percentage (.950) and third in wins (11). Meanwhile, nationally, Jonsson ranked sixth in goals against average and save percentage, 19th in winning percentage, and fourth in shutouts. Postseason awards for Jonsson this past winter included New England Hockey Writers' Association All-Region accolades, a selection to the CHC Championship All-Tournament Team, the CHC Goaltender of the Year award and All-Conference First Team honors.

BRYN LIPTON | JUNIOR | MEN'S VOLLEYBALL | MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

Lipton guided the Gulls to the 2019 New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) title and NCAA Tournament quarterfinals behind the following statistics: 3.39 kills per set (305 total), a .322 hitting percentage, 0.49 service aces (44 total), 1.64 digs (148 total), 0.40 blocks (seven solo, 29 assisted) and 370.5 points (4.1 per set) in 27 matches played. Nationally, Lipton ranked No. 26 in aces per set, No. 35 in hitting percentage, No. 28 in kills per set, and No. 19 in points per set. His play also aided Endicott to the No. 1 ranking in Division III in hitting percentage (.319) and No. 6 position in aces per set (2.27). For his efforts, Lipton was named a 2019 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-American and also earned All-NECC First Team accolades. As a team, the Gulls finished the year with its highest-ever national ranking at No. 5 overall.

ABIGAIL KEIM | SENIOR | WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY/TRACK & FIELD | FEMALE STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

Keim, who sports a perfect 4.0 cumulative grade point average (GPA) as a biology and biotechnology and psychology double major, claimed the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Scholar-Athlete of the Year award in both of her sports – cross country and track & field – earlier this year. She also will pursue her Ph.D. at Dartmouth upon graduating. Her other academic accomplishments include a Google Cloud Academic All-District selection (2018) and five CCC Academic All-Conference honors in addition to being the President of the Psi Chi Honor Society, a member of the Phi Sigma Honor Society, the Mortar Board Honor Society, and the Biotechnology Society. Keim also participates as the head delegate of the Model UN team and is a peer tutor and mentor.

JOSH BOWES | SENIOR | MEN'S ICE HOCKEY | MALE STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

Bowes, who has already been accepted into medical school at the University of Alberta, boasts a 3.93 GPA as a biology/pre-med major at Endicott. Bowes also has been a member of the Dean's List six times, is a two-time American Hockey Coaches' Association (AHCA) All-American Scholar, and a three-time CCC Academic All-Conference honoree. Aside from his academics, Bowes signed a professional hockey contract and won a Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) championship with the Huntsville Havoc earlier this month and claimed the 2018-19 NCAA Division III short-handed goals statistical championship as well. 

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)