Athletics Holds Annual Year-End Banquet

ATHLETICS HOSTS ANNUAL BANQUET

The Elms College athletic department held its annual year-end banquet on Tuesday, May 8 to honor the accomplishments of its student athletes from the 2006-07 season.

The evening began with words of welcome from both Director of Athletics Louise McCleary and Elms College President Dr. James Mullen, Jr.

Women's lacrosse student athlete Raemarie Josefiak gave the invocation before dinner, and at the conclusion of the evening's festivities, men's volleyball student athlete Matt Zybert gave the benediction.

Senior women's soccer player Tina Lempke and senior men's volleyball player Byron Bledsoe were honored as this year's recipients of the Dr. Joachim Froehlich Awards of Excellence, while senior men's basketball player Justin Davis and senior women's soccer and women's lacrosse player Jill Jacobs were named as the recipients of the Monsignor Timothy J. Leary Awards.

The Froehlich Award honors one male and one female senior student athlete annually for his or her athletic excellence throughout their intercollegiate career. Furthermore, in the spirit of former Elms College President Dr. Joachim Froehlich, who passed away in November 2003 following a battle with cancer, the award winners shall be well rounded by achieving both athletic and academic success. They will also have a full understanding of Elms College's mission and be an inspiration to their teammates and coaches.

The Leary Award, meanwhile, pays honor to Monsignor Leary's contributions to Elms College athletics and his dedication, sportsmanship and love for athletics. This award is presented to one male and one female student athlete who demonstrate in his or her intercollegiate competition the kind of spirit that Monsignor Leary exemplified.

Women's soccer freshman Kelsey Battige, men's soccer sophomore Jack Paulo II and women's basketball junior Michelle Fernandes were this year's winners of the Sports Medicine Awards presented by Elms College's athletic training staff.

The following were presented with Senior Awards, which are given to each graduating senior who has participated in his or her sport during each year attended at Elms College:

John Ancrum (men's basketball), Martha Arment (women's basketball), Bill Beauregard (men's basketball), Sarah Casagrande (women's soccer), Stephanie Charles (field hockey/women's lacrosse), Jay Ciesluk (men's soccer), Brian Cunniff (men's volleyball), Justin Davis (men's basketball), Erin Della Giustina (field hockey), Jim Hurlbut (men's golf), Jill Jacobs (women's soccer/lacrosse), Matt Kapinos (men's soccer), Jen LeDoux (women's soccer/softball), Tina Lempke (women's soccer), Ted Manley (men's swimming), J.T. Mooney (baseball), Chelsea Rose (women's soccer), Colleen Strunk (field hockey/women's swimming/lacrosse), Matt Walsh (men's golf), Jay Wheeler (baseball) and David Williams (men's basketball).

The winners of the second-annual Bolt Awards, as voted upon by the student athletes, were Matt Kapinos (Iron Man), Gina Gilday (Iron Woman), Paige Schneider (Most Improved), Liz Walker (Best Upset) and Jenkin Gould (Tommy Hurst).