The two standout student-athletes were among those honored at Elon's annual athletics banquet on May 1.
Additionally, Director of Athletics Dave Blank presented President Leo M. Lambert and his wife, Laurie, with a special gift at the conclusion of the event, a special quilt highlighting championships, individual awards and accomplishments, global experiences and athletic facilities that were constructed and renovated during his tenure as Elon’s eighth president. Current and former Phoenix student-athletes took part in a special video to say thanks to President Lambert and wish him well in his retirement.
For the second straight year, the back-to-back CAA Men’s Cross Country champion Nick Ciolkowski garnered the Stein H. Basnight Outstanding Athlete of the year on the men’s side, while women’s basketball standout guard Shay Burnett picked up the honor as the women’s athlete of the year.
The Stein H. Basnight Outstanding Athlete Award has been presented annually since 1958 in memory of the late Stein H. Basnight of Chapel Hill, N.C. The award honors the most outstanding Phoenix male and female athletes of the year, as determined by the Elon Department of Athletics’ administrative staff. Jesse Basnight, Jr. represented the Basnight family at the banquet.
Ciolkowski successfully defended his individual league title after winning the men’s 8K at the CAA Championships with a time of 25:08.10 – 13 seconds faster than the runner-up. During the season, he set a new personal-best time of 24:16.01 in the 8K at the Greater Louisville Classic and was named the CAA Runner of the Week three times this season. A biochemistry major with a cumulative 3.85 GPA, Ciolkowski was also named the CAA Cross Country Scholar Athlete of the Year and was a recipient of Elon’s Lumen Prize recently, earning a $15,000 scholarship to support his future research.
A first-team All-CAA selection, Burnett led the Phoenix women’s basketball team in scoring, rebounding and assists en route to both the CAA regular season and tournament championships. Elon earned its first ever bid at the Division I level to the NCAA Tournament this past season, finishing the year with 27 victories. Burnett had seven double-doubles, six games with 20+ points and eight games with 10+ rebounds this past season. She was named CAA Player of the Week twice and scored her 1,000th career point on Feb. 5.
Men’s basketball sophomore Tyler Seibring and women’s basketball senior Lauren Brown were recognized as the recipients of the Robert C. Browne Memorial Sportsmanship Award. The Browne Award was established in 1972 in memory of Elon alumnus Robert C. Browne by his sister, Pretto Browne-Crumpton, and her husband, Dr. J.L. Crumpton, and is presented annually to the Elon male and female athletes who have best displayed exemplary qualities of sportsmanship as determined by the Elon Department of Athletics administrative staff.
Seibring was named the CAA Men’s Basketball Scholar Athlete of the Year this past season and earned Academic All-American accolades. Seibring was active in the men’s basketball team’s involvement in Elonthon this spring, a 24-hour Dance Marathon that raises money to benefit the patients and families at Duke Children’s Hospital.
Brown was the recipient of the Dean Ehlers Leadership Award, which is given annually by the CAA to a men’s and women’s basketball student-athlete who embodies the highest standards of leadership, integrity and sportsmanship in conjunction with his academic athletic achievement. She is an exercise science major and a neuroscience minor. She owns 3.52 GPA and participates in Elon BrainCARE.
Men’s golfer Charlie May and softball player Emily Roper were recipients of the A.L. Hook Scholar-Athlete awards this year. The Hook Award has been presented annually since 1975 in honor of Dr. A.L. Hook to the Phoenix male and female junior or senior athletes who possess the highest cumulative grade-point average with a minimum of two years of playing time at Elon. May is a finance major with a 3.87 GPA and Roper holds 4.0 cumulative GPA as a human service studies major with a minor in professional writing. Roper was a recent recipient of the prestigious John W. Barney Memorial Award, which is given annual to the Elon senior with the highest cumulative GPA.
Team MVP Award Winners
Football – David Petroni
Volleyball – Sydel Curry
Women’s Soccer – Kendall Ballotti
Men’s Soccer – Elijah Agu
Women’s Cross Country – Kimberly Johansen
Men’s Cross Country – Nick Ciolkowski
Men’s Basketball – Tyler Seibring
Women’s Basketball – Shay Burnett
Coed Cheerleading – Grant Jones
All-Female Cheerleading – Alexandra Slota
Dance Team – Elly Dirks
Women’s Tennis – Maria Paraja
Men’s Tennis – Felipe Sarrasague
Men’s Golf – Philip Loeb
Women’s Golf – Kelsey Badmaev
*Note: Lacrosse, baseball, softball and women’s track and field have not awarded team MVPs yet with their seasons still in progress.
Football
Most Outstanding Offensive Player (CJ Toogood)
Most Outstanding Defensive Player (Chris Blair)
Most Outstanding Special Teams (John Gallagher)
Coaches’ Award (Alex Higgins)
Most Outstanding Newcomer (De’Sean McNair)
Team MVP (David Petroni)
Volleyball
Coaches’ Award (Morgan Maner)
Most Improved (Ebony Scott)
Top Newcomer (Nori Thomas)
Team MVP (Sydel Curry)
Women’s Soccer
Most Valuable Leader (Alexis de Groot)
Newcomer of the Year (Taylor Paradoski)
Most Improved (Sue Anderson)
Courage Award (Grace Bennett)
Team MVP (Kendall Ballotti)
Men’s Soccer
Top Newcomer (Luke Matthews)
Scholar Athlete (Marcel Fahrenholz)
Team MVP (Elijah Agu)
Women’s Cross Country
Coach’s Award (Shelby Cuddeback)
Most Dedicated (Brigid Brennan)
Most Consistent (Melissa Anastasakis)
Most Improved (Carolyn Hopkins)
Team MVP (Kimberly Johansen)
Men’s Cross Country
Coach’s Award (Justin Leopold)
Most Dedicated (Carlos Andino)
Most Improved (Michael Germinario)
Team MVP (Nick Ciolkowski)
Cheerleading – All-Female Team
Coach’s Award (Dominique Cadet)
Rookie of the Year (Zitlali Zamora)
Team MVP (Alexandra Slota)
Cheerleading – Co-Ed Team
Coach’s Award (Rebecca Dewosky)
Rookie of the Year (Briana Vidi)
Team MVP (Grant Jones)
Dance Team
Coach’s Award (Polina Volgunina)
Rookie of the Year (Natalie Wright)
Team MVP (Elly Dirks)
Women’s Track & Field
Outstanding Track (Kimberly Johansen)
Outstanding Field (Bryanna Hames and Carrie Abraham)
Top Point Scorer Award (Bryanna Hames)
Coaches Award (Skylar Barthelmes)
Men’s Basketball
Coaches’ Award (Ryder Bowline)
Phoenix Award (Dainan Swoope)
Pound the Rock Award (Brian Dawkins)
Team MVP (Tyler Seibring)
Women’s Basketball
Best Offensive Player (Shay Burnett)
Best Defensive Player (Essence Baucom)
Most Improved (Lauren Brown)
Coaches’ Award (Lenaira Ruffin)
Team MVP (Shay Burnett)
Athletic Department Award
Service Award (John Zimmer – Phoenix All-Access)
Men’s Tennis
Most Improved (Salvador Mijares)
Leadership Award (Neal Port)
Mr. Consistency (Jacob Bicknell)
Team MVP (Felipe Sarrasague)
Softball
Golden Glove Award (Carey Million)
Pitcher of the Year (Kiandra Mitchum)
Hustle Award (Emily Roper)
Women’s Tennis
Phoenix Award (Suzanne Zenoni)
Most Improved (Olivia Lucas)
Heart & Hustle (Erica Braschi)
Team MVP (Maria Paraja)
Baseball
Pitcher of the Year (Kyle Brnovich)
Coaches Award (Joe Satterfield)
Freshman of the Year (Kyle Brnovich)
Danieley Memorial Sportsmanship (Danny Crowe)
Men’s Golf
Most Improved Award (Jake Leavitt)
Leadership Award (Jared Mactas)
Coach’s Award (William Harwood)
Team MVP (Philip Loeb)
Lacrosse
Scholar-Athlete (Stephanie Thomson)
Women’s Golf
Leadership Award (Heather Munro)
Team MVP (Kelsey Badmaev)
Special Awards
A.L. Hook Scholar Athletes
Emily Roper, Softball, 4.0 GPA
Charlie May, Men’s Golf, 3.87 GPA
Browne Memorial Sportsmanship
Lauren Brown, Women’s Basketball
Tyler Seibring, Men’s Basketball
Basnight Outstanding Athletes
Shay Burnett, Women’s Basketball
Nick Ciolkowski, Men’s Cross Country