West Babylon, N.Y. - On Friday morning, the East Coast Conference announced its annual academic award winners.
The East Coast Conference announced its Male and Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year, as well as the Scholar-Athletes of the Year for each of its championship sports for the 2021-22 season. Matthias Kuhn (Viernheim, Germany) from Mercy men’s soccer was named the Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year and Katie Titus (Penfield, N.Y.) of Daemen’s women’s basketball team earned the honor of Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Kuhn, a junior International Business major with a 3.90 GPA, was named the ECC Defensive Player of the Year after helping the Mavericks average a conference-low 0.96 goals against average. He also contributed on the offensive end, finishing the season with seven goals and one assist for 15 points. For his efforts, Kuhn was a consensus All-Region selection and earned a spot on the Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) and CoSIDA Academic All-America Teams.
Titus, a senior Childhood/Special Education major with a 3.90 GPA, helped lead the Wildcats to the NCAA East Region Final after winning ECC regular season and postseason championships. She picked up numerous personal accolades along the way as well after averaging 20.5 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. She claimed the ECC Player of the Year and D2CCA East Region Player of the Year awards. In addition, she was named a First Team All-American by the D2CCA and also earned CoSIDA Academic All-America status.
Kuhn and Titus were also named the Scholar-Athlete of the Year for their respective sports.
All ECC Scholar-Athlete of the Year recipients hold at least a 3.30 GPA, are a starter or key reserve and have reached at least sophomore standing both athletically and academically.
2021-22 ECC Scholar-Athletes of the Year
Baseball – Nolan Giblin, Mercy: Giblin was also the ECC Elite 19 Award winner for baseball with a 3.90 GPA as a Business Administration/Finance major. On the diamond, Giblin earned a spot on the ECC All-Conference Second Team after ranking in the top-10 in the league with a .365 batting average and six home runs.
Men's Basketball – Andrew Sischo, Daemen: Sischo is the Men’s Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year for the third year in a row. A graduate student with a 3.45 GPA while majoring in Business Administration, Sischo wrapped up the most decorated career in ECC history by averaging 22.9 points and 13.0 rebounds per game. He broke ECC career records for points, rebounds, and field goals made and finished ranked fourth all-time in Division II in rebounds and 15th in points. He earned numerous accolades including the ECC Player of the Year, D2CCA East Region Player of the Year, consensus All-America honors, and a spot on the CoSIDA Academic All-America Team.
Women's Bowling – Megan Wehmeier, Adelphi: Wehmeier, a senior Psychology and Criminal Justice major with a 3.87 GPA, earns the honor after being named to the ECC All-Conference Third Team. A standout in Baker format, Wehmeier ranked sixth in the conference with an 18.98 frame average in the 10th frame.
Men’s Cross Country – Shane Pease, Roberts Wesleyan: Pease, a senior Homeland Security & Applied Intelligence major with a 3.35 GPA, finished second at the ECC Championship to help Roberts claim a seventh straight ECC title.
Women’s Cross Country – Bailey Gostomski, Roberts Wesleyan: Gostomski wins a Scholar-Athlete of the Year honor for a second straight year after winning in the sport of women’s outdoor track & field in 2021. The senior Computer Science major with a 3.95 GPA was the ECC Runner of the Year after finishing first at the ECC Championship in a time of 18:07.3.
Men’s Indoor Track & Field – Blake Kasper, Roberts Wesleyan: Kasper finished in second place in both the 3,000m (8:49.06) and 5,000m (15:17.94) at the ECC Indoor Track & Field Championship. Off the track, he holds a 3.87 GPA as a Nursing major.
Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Shania Le Maitre, Holy Family: A junior Biology major with a near-perfect 3.97 GPA, La Maitre helped the Tigers to their first-ever ECC Championship with wins in the 800m (2:21.68) and the 4x400m relay (4:00.36).
Men’s Lacrosse – Jack Kipnes, Mercy: Kipnes helped lead Mercy to their best-ever season with an ECC Championship and an appearance in the Division II National Championship Game. A First Team All-ECC and USILA Third Team All-American as a defender, Kipnes has excelled in the classroom as well, compiling a 3.82 GPA as a senior Finance and Data Analytics major.
Women’s Lacrosse – Amanda Waliszewski, D’Youville: Waliszewski, a junior Nursing major with a 3.94 GPA, earned All-ECC accolades for the second straight year after scooping up 41 ground balls and causing 14 turnovers.
Men’s Outdoor Track and Field – Erik Matthews, Daemen: Matthews, a junior with a perfect 4.0 GPA as a Physical Therapy major, repeats as the Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Matthews was the ECC Champion in the 400m (56.08) hurdles for the second straight year and also finished second in the 110m hurdles (16.31).
Women’s Outdoor Track and Field – Meaghan O’Callaghan, Molloy: O’Callaghan is the Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Scholar-Athlete of the Year after helping Molloy to a win in the 4x400m relay in a time of 3:59.87 at the ECC Championship. A two-time ECC Elite 19 winner, the graduate student has a 4.0 GPA as an Education major.
Women’s Soccer – Lexi Verni, Molloy: The ECC Offensive Player of the Year and D2CCA East Region Player of the Year after scoring 12 goals and adding three assists for 27 points, Verni now adds Women’s Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the Year to her trophy case. The junior holds a 3.65 GPA as a Business Management major.
Softball – Kiana Robinson, Bridgeport: Robinson, a sophomore with a perfect 4.0 GPA as an Accounting major, helped the Purple Knights to their third straight ECC title with a .376 batting average to go along with 10 doubles, three home runs, and 21 RBI. Her efforts earned her a spot on the ECC All-Conference First Team and consensus All-Region status.
Men’s Tennis – Lennart Lehmann, St. Thomas Aquinas: Lehman, the ECC Elite 19 winner, and an All-Conference pick after posting a 21-6 singles record, holds a 3.94 GPA as a sophomore Business Administration & Management major.
Women’s Tennis – Simone Parn, Dist. Columbia: Parn wraps up an accolade-filled season with the Women’s Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year honor. A graduate student who has a perfect 4.0 GPA in both her graduate and undergraduate studies as a Biology major, was the ECC Player of the Year after a 14-2 record at No. 1 singles.
Volleyball – Larissa Schneid, Mercy: A junior Biology major with a perfect 4.0 GPA, Schneid was an All-Conference First Team honoree after finishing in the top-three in the ECC with 327 kills, 3.30 kills per set, and 48 service aces.
ECC Academic Success Rate Award
St. Thomas Aquinas was awarded the ECC Academic Success Rate Award. The Spartans earned the honor for the fifth year in a row after posting a 90 percent graduation success rate in the NCAA Academic Tracking System.
