2015 Alfred State End of the Year Awards
Recently the Alfred State athletic department hosted their annual end of year awards ceremony. The ceremony held in the Cappadonia Auditorium featured recaps of every team, award presentations, and the honoring of the first group of four-year Pioneer student athletes.
Kay Pfleghardt (Tioga) along with Ryan Hierlwimmer (Livonia) and Tommy Hutson (Brooklyn/Susan McKinney) were honored with the Pioneer Award.
Pfleghardt, a four year member of the volleyball team, led the Pioneers to first USCAA National Championship Tournament & ECAC Tournament. She Earned 1st team USCAA All-American honors after recording 396 kills and 378 digs this season and is the first player in program history to record over 1,000 kills (1,276 career kills). Pfleghardt is credited for being a leader on and off the court and serves as the vice president of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee. She also ran the volleyball team’s Dig Pink event. This is the 2nd straight year she has won this award.
Hierlwimmer, a four year member of the baseball team, appeared in 36 games and collected 10 RBIs this season. He was a team captain and member of the Student Athletic Advisory Committee. He was also part part of 14 different civic engagement activities while working hard to increase his GPA and will graduate on time. He also is credited for helping lead team activities that included fund raising and field maintenance.
Hutson a four year member of the basketball team, is the first player under Coach Jusianiec to reach the 1,000 point plateau. He played in all 25 games this season and scored 257 points and grabbed 78 rebounds. Credited for working extremely hard to improve and develop his game and he was key in several civic engagement projects including being the kid’s favorite at the free buddy basketball classic.
Haley Witchella (Oxford) and Rasheed Williams (Swedesboro, NJ) were named the Athletes of the Year.
Withcella, participated for her third year on the basketball team, and was named 1st team USCAA All-American and named to the all-tournament team at the National Championships. She scored 538 points, grabbed 381 rebounds, and had 68 blocks on the year. In all 26 games she scored in double figures and recorded 22 double-doubles. Witchella eclipsed the 1,000 point plateau and is the program’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder.
Williams, a two year member of the football team, rushed for 1,676 yards and 16 touchdowns this year. He ran for over 100 yards in eight of nine game and was named All-USCAA 1st team and All-ECAC North 1st team. He finished with career with 2,843 yards and 26 touchdownd and established or tied 11 football all-time records. Williams recently signed a contract with the Detroit Lions.
Victoire Kothor (Greece Odyssey) along with Aaron Buck (Churchville Chili) and Bryce Cutler (Newtown, NJ) were named the Newcomers of the Year.
Kothor broke four records this year as a member of the indoor and outdoor track & field teams. She is now the indoor record holder in the shot put and the weight throw and the outdoor record holder in the shot put and hammer throw. She qualified for the ECAC Championships in both indoor and outdoor seasons. At the NYS Championships she was 3rd in the shot put outdoors, 4th in the weight throw indoors, and 5th in the shot put indoors. Known for always has a smile on her face and is an outstanding representative of the athletic department.
Buck led the Pioneer lacrosse team with 54 points on the season. He netted five hat tricks on the year on his way to 34 goals, which was 2nd on the team. He scored a season high 10 goals and three assists in a come-from-behind victory over Houghton.
Cutler, a freshmen captain on the swimming team, broke ten Alfred State NCAA school records this season (seven individual and three relays). He accumulated eight 1st place finishes, four 2nd place finishes, and two 3rd place finishes on his way to being named team MVP. Cutler also earned a 3.88 GPA.
Destiny Brito (Manhattan/Park West) and Dylan Lewis-Ellison (Whitesville) were named the Leadship Award recipients.
Brito, a four year member of the basketball team, was the non-stop floor general who rarely came out of games. She worked hard to improve her game each day and motivated her teammates to do the same. During her time he developed into one of the best point guards in program history. She finished the season with 160 assists which ranks her 2nd in the all-time single season list. She also scored 136 points and grabbed 180 rebounds as she helped the Lady Pioneers to the USCAA semifinals.
Lewis-Ellison, a three year member of the baseball team, appeared in 28 games this spring for the Pioneers and hit .271 with 13 RBI. He is led team activities including civic engagement, fund raising, and field maintenance. Credited for always playing hard and leading by example. Will graduate with over a 3.0 GPA.
Lera Braun (Waterloo) and Nick Smith (Arkport) were the recipients of the Daniel J. Neverett Sportsmanship Award.
Braun, a three year member of the volleyball team, was named All-USCAA All-American 2nd team this year after passing out 993 assists and picking up 246 digs and 134 kills. She appeared in all 116 of the Lady Pioneers sets this season. Credited for always conducting herself with a high degree of integrity and character and for being well respected by her teammates as well as opposing coaches and players. She is also Able to maintain perspective allowing herself and the team to grow while being supportive of her teammates.
Smith, a catcher on the baseball team and formerly a goalkeeper on the soccer team, appeared in 11 games and made seven starts on the diamond this year. He has thrived during his time at Alfred State while overcoming adversity and is a constant source of inspiration and leadership for his teammates. Smith never complained and helped lead younger players to do things the right way and is credited for helping develop the pitching staff by consistently working with them in the bullpen.
Lacee Hill (Friendship) and Brandon Teboe (Falconer) earned the Academic Award. The academic award is given to the student-athlete with the highest overall GPA in the department and has participated for at least two years.
Hill, a member of the women’s soccer team, has a 3.91 GPA in Liberal Arts – Math and Sciences while Teboe, a member of the track & field team, has a 3.94 GPA in Mechanical Engineering.
Volleyball coach Gene Doorley was awarded the William Havens Award while Morgan Franchina (Cassadaga Valley) was the recipient of the Pioneer Honors Award.
Doorley led the volleyball team to a 4th place finish and to the ECAC Championships. He also coordinated the opening of the new fitness cneter in Pioneer and the re-organization of the center in Orvis into a strength and condition room. He is always willing to help student-athletes and team with strength programs.
Franchina, the athletic department student photographer/graphic designer, is tireless worker in support of Pioneer athletics. She is willing to help in any way possible to better the department She takes photos, creates videos, and performs numerous tasks needed in the athletic department. It is easy to see her love and passion for Alfred State.
The highlight of the evening was the honoring of the first 16 Pioneer student athletes that have competed wearing the blue & gold for all four years of their college career. Each of these student athletes (listed below) were given a framed Alfred State "A".
- Ryan Hierlwimmer: Baseball
- Jordan Wheaton: Baseball
- Destiny Brito: Women's Basketball
- Jennifer Fedrick: Women's Basketball
- Tommy Hutson: Men's Basketball
- Tom Lattanzi: Cross Country
- Nick DePofi: Football
- David Londono: Football
- Matt Munson: Football
- Keegan Phalen: Football
- Mike Maranga: Lacrosse
- Nick Peraino: Men's Soccer
- Michael Yacuzzo: Men's Soccer
- Taylor McCarthy: Softball
- Zach Woodard: Track & Field
- Kay Pfleghardt: Volleyball
The 2014-15 athletic year featured five teams competing in the USCAA National Championships, five teams competing at ECAC Championships, and numerous new school records.
