WEST BABYLON, N.Y. – The East Coast Conference has announced its Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, as well as the Scholar-Athletes of the Year for each of its championship sports for the 2023-24 campaign, it was announced on Tuesday afternoon. Mercy men's lacrosse senior Tyler Pjatak (Shelton, Conn.) and Molloy women's soccer senior Sarah Tappeto (Merrick, N.Y.) headlined the list of award winners as this year's overall ECC Male and Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year.
A United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Second Team All-American and USA Lacrosse Magazine Third Team All-American this spring, Pjatak carries a 3.84 GPA in business administration. After dominating with 57 ground balls and 28 caused turnovers to go with eight points on five goals and three assists, the senior short stick defensive midfielder earned ECC All-Conference Second Team honors and helped lead the Mavericks to their fifth consecutive ECC Championship title this spring.
A College Sport Communicators (CSC) and Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) First Team All-American and United Soccer Coaches (USC) First Team All-East Region selection this fall, Tappeto holds a 3.92 GPA in accounting/finance. The Molloy senior back was voted the ECC Defensive Player of the Year after totaling 20 points on seven goals and six assists and anchoring the Lions' defensive unit en route to claiming the ECC Championship title this fall.
Pjatak and Tappeto 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.
2023-24 ECC Scholar-Athletes of the Year
Baseball – Samuel Worthen, D'Youville
A senior physical therapy major carrying a 3.89 GPA, Worthen earned American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-American status after ranking second in the NCAA in saves (14). The D'Youville standout relief pitcher was also named to the ECC All-Conference First Team and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCWBA) and D2CCA All-Region First Teams.
Men's Basketball – Garrett Kirkland, Mercy
Kirkland, a graduate student with a perfect 4.0 GPA in organizational leadership, repeats as the ECC Men's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year after contributing 9.9 points per game on a team-leading 71 made three-pointers. The Mercy guard and CSC Academic All-District honoree had previously earned his undergraduate degree in business administration.
Women's Basketball – Natalie Angeletti, Daemen
A senior education major with a 3.91 GPA, Angeletti started all 31 games for the ECC Champion Wildcats, who turned in a 23-win season. The Daemen forward was named to the NCAA East Region Championship All-Tournament Team after averaging 15.0 points and 7.3 rebounds in wins over St. Rose, Assumption and Jefferson.
Women's Bowling – Arianna Clouse, Mercyhurst
Clouse, a senior secondary education major with a 3.84 GPA, was named to the ECC All-Conference Second Team after averaging 18.99 pins per frame in baker games and a mark of 18.23 in team play across 905 total frames. She had an overall fill percentage of over 77.7 in both formats and recorded an overall strike percentage of 44.0 with 257 in baker games and 146 in team play.
Men's Cross Country – Blake Kasper, Roberts Wesleyan
An ECC All-Conference First Team and United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-East Region selection, Kasper is a senior nursing major with a 3.76 GPA. The RWU standout placed third at the ECC Championship 8k (25:01.0) and fourth at the NCAA East Region Championship 10k (31:00.8) this fall.
Women's Cross Country – Camryn Bailey, Daemen
Bailey is a natural sciences major with a 3.94 GPA. The Daemen senior earned ECC All-Conference First Team honors with a seventh-place finish at the ECC Championship 5k (18:58.8) as well as USTFCCCA All-East Region recognition after placing 19th at the NCAA East Region Championship (22:40.9). Bailey had earned ECC Women's Outdoor Track & Field Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors last year.
Men's Indoor Track & Field – Zachary Hall, Roberts Wesleyan
Hall was the ECC Champion in the 5000m (15:45.06) and runner-up in the 3000m (9:00.40) at the ECC Championship this winter. Off the track, the junior holds a 3.89 GPA as an accounting major.
Women's Indoor Track & Field – Brynn King, Roberts Wesleyan
The NCAA National Champion in the indoor pole vault, King enjoyed one of the most decorated seasons in ECC history this winter. In her first year with the conference after joining Roberts Wesleyan after earning an evolutionary anthropology degree from Duke, King broke the NCAA DII women's pole vault record eight times, including the current record of 4.65 meters (15' 3"), which she set at the NCAA Championships. She dropped nine of the 10 best indoor performances in NCAA DII women's pole vault history en route to being named the USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Year, USTFCCCA East Region Field Athlete of the Year, and ECC Women's Athlete of the Year. Just as impressive in the classroom, King carried a perfect 4.0 GPA in exercise science this year.
Men's Lacrosse – Tyler Pjatak, Mercy
A USILA Second Team All-American and USA Lacrosse Magazine Third Team All-American this spring, Pjatak carries a 3.84 GPA in business administration. After dominating with 57 ground balls and 28 caused turnovers to go with eight points on five goals and three assists, the senior short stick defensive midfielder earned ECC All-Conference Second Team honors and helped lead the Mavericks to their fifth consecutive ECC Championship title this spring. Pjatak was also selected the ECC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Women's Lacrosse – Lindsey Shimborske, Mercy
Carrying a 3.99 GPA in health sciences/physical therapy, ECC Defender of the Year Shimborske repeats as the ECC Women's Lacrosse Scholar-Athlete of the Year. The Mercy junior was named an Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) First Team All-American and USA Lacrosse Magazine Second Team All-American after ranking 16th nationally in draw controls per game (6.33, 114 total) to go with an ECC-best 41 caused turnovers and 58 ground balls.
Men's Outdoor Track and Field – Eric Anderson, Molloy
Anderson, holds a 3.92 GPA in education and won the 400 meter hurdles (56.22) and 4x400 meter relay (3:25.71) at the ECC Championship as a senior this spring. He also earned this year's ECC Outdoor Track & Field Elite 20 Award for earning the highest cumulative GPA out of all student-athletes competing at the ECC Championship.
Women's Outdoor Track and Field – Kylee Odell, Roberts Wesleyan & Faith Rousseau, Molloy
A senior math education major with a 3.88 GPA, Odell won both the 800m (2:15.08) and 1500m (4:40.96) at the ECC Championship, setting the meet record in the 800m.
A senior psychology major with an identical 3.88 GPA, Rousseau won both the javelin (34.35m) and shot put (11.70m) and placed second in the high jump (1.55m) to score 24 of Molloy's 44 points at the ECC Championship.
Men's Soccer – Johannes Hanken Tjostheim, Mercy
Tjostheim was selected a CSC First Team Academic All-American after turning in a 3.94 GPA in psychology and social work. The Mercy sophomore was an All-ECC First Team forward after tying for the ECC lead in goals (13) and ranking third in the ECC in points (30) and went on to earn USC All-Region First Team and D2CCA All-Region Second Team recognition.
Women's Soccer – Sarah Tappeto, Molloy
A CSC and D2CCA First Team All-American and USC First Team All-East Region selection this fall, Tappeto holds a 3.92 GPA in accounting/finance. The Molloy senior back was voted the ECC Defensive Player of the Year after totaling 20 points on seven goals and six assists and anchoring the Lions' defensive unit en route to claiming the ECC Championship title this fall. Tappeto was also selected the ECC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Softball – Steph Conrade, Molloy & Samantha Franck, Mercy
Conrade carries a 3.88 GPA in her five-year, secondary education combined undergraduate and graduate program. The ECC All-Conference First Team selection topped the ECC with 28 stolen bases (in 31 attempts) and 12 sacrifice hits and batted .326 with 60 hits, three doubles, three triples, and 16 runs batted in for the Lions, who earned a share of the ECC Regular Season Championship this spring.
Franck finished her undergraduate degree in health science with a 3.749 GPA and holds a perfect 4.0 GPA in her post-graduate organizational leadership studies. Also an ECC All-Conference First Team pick this season, Franck hit .331 with an ECC-leading 18 home runs, which ranked 12th nationally, to go with 38 runs batted in, nine doubles, and 30 runs scored en route to CSC Academic All-District and D2CCA Second Team All-Region recognition.
Men's Tennis – Roni Rikkonen, Queens
Rikkonen holds a 3.53 GPA as a senior international business major. On the court, Rikkonen was tabbed the ECC Player of the Year after posting a perfect 5-0 record from the No. 1 position in ECC singles play and 3-3 record in ECC doubles play, including a 2-2 record from the No. 1 position and 1-0 record from the No. 2 position during the regular season. In the postseason, Rikkonen went 3-0 at No. 1 singles, which included the dramatic match point finish in the ECC Championship, and 3-2 at No. 1 doubles. Rikkonen also won the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Men's East Regional Singles Championship en route to being tabbed the ITA Player of the Year.
Women's Tennis – Viktoriia Pavlovets, St. Thomas Aquinas
Carrying a 3.96 GPA as a business administration/MBA graduate student, Pavlovets was named the ITA East Region Most Improved Player for 2024. The STAC graduate student has totaled 18 wins in both doubles (10-7) and singles (8-12) play to date. During the fall season, Pavlovets played primarily in the No. 3 doubles spot with teammate Giovanna Jallas and the No. 2 singles position. She was then elevated to the top spots in both singles and doubles during the spring campaign.
Women's Volleyball – Larissa Schneid, Mercy
Schneid repeats as the award winner after maintaining a perfect 4.0 as a senior biomedical science major. Named the ECC Player of the Year, Schneid helped lead Mercy to the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2005 with 318 kills (3.74 per set), 252 digs (2.96 per set), 26 aces, and 26 blocks. Schneid also earned CSC Third Team Academic All-American, D2CAA Second Team All-Region, and AVCA All-Region Honorable Mention accolades this year and most recently was named Commencement speaker at Mercy's School of Health and Natural Sciences ceremony.
Note: No nominees for men's volleyball.
ECC Academic Success Rate Award
Mercy was awarded the ECC Academic Success Rate Award. The Mavericks earned the honor for the second year in a row after posting a 94 percent graduation success rate in the NCAA Academic Tracking System.
Previous Scholar-Athlete and Academic Award Winners
2022-23
2021-22
2020-21
2019-20
2018-19