Wellesley Athletics Holds End-of-Year Celebration

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Thursday night marked the annual Wellesley College Scholar-Athlete celebration, held in Tishman Commons. The event, which included several new awards and honors, culminated in the announcement of the winner of the Barbara Barnes Hauptfuhrer Scholar-Athlete Award, tennis player Marie Watanabe.

The Hauptfuhrer award is given each year to a graduating senior who has best demonstrated athletic achievement, scholarship and leadership while at Wellesley College. The award is named for Barbara Barnes Hauptfuhrer ’49, who served as a Trustee and president of the alumae association. She also endowed the Barbara Barnes Hauptfuhrer Physical Education Fund in 1973, which helps support Wellesley teams in post-season competition.

Watanabe is a four-year member of the tennis team from Houston, Texas and has held the number one singles and doubles positions for most of her athletic career. During her athletic career she has received numerous honors, including NEWMAC Rookie of the Year, NEWMAC Player of the Year twice, and NEWMAC All-Conference player six times. She recorded NEWMAC career records of 19-4 in singles and 23-2 in doubles, currently holding a 109-62 record in overall play. An economics major, Watanabe has also studied at Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, and will serve as Wellesley's nomination for the 2012 NCAA Woman of the Year award.

The other two finalists for the Hauptfuhrer award, Whitney Reid and Zsofia Schweger, were also recognized. Reid is a four-year member of the field hockey team and concluded her athletic career being named an All-NEWMAC and All-Region player this fall. A biological sciences major, Reid received NFHCA and NEWMAC Academic recognition for three seasons. Schweger, a four-year member of the fencing team, is a three-time NCAA Regional qualifier. A double major in studio art and comparative literature, Schweger is an accomplished artist and has received several fellowships for her work.

The Friends of Wellesley College Athletics Honor Award was presented to Dr. Joanne Borg-Stein, who has worked with the Athletic Training team since 2004. Dr. Borg-Stein was recognized for the generosity she has shown with her time and the commitment she has demonstrated in treating Wellesley athletes. FOWCA also awarded the Linda K. Vaughan Award for Exceptional Service at the event. The honor, which is given to an individual who has shown exceptional support for Wellesley athletics, was awarded to Maria Finarelli, class of 1990 for her contributions while serving on the FOWCA national committee.

Other notable awards presented included the department’s Most Outstanding Contribution award, which went to senior Alex Hatem. Hatem was recognized for unparalleled contributions to Event Management, Athletic Training, Sports Information and Blue Pride throughout four years as a student-worker in the department. The Inspirational Award, which is presented to a student who has overcome exceptional circumstances to participate in athletics, was awarded to squash player Rosemary O’Connor for her perseverance in dealing with injuries and her exceptional performance regardless of the circumstances.

The Outstanding Senior Athlete Award, which is given to a senior with extraordinary athletic accomplishments at Wellesley, was presented to Leah Clement for her contributions to the cross country and track teams, which included All-Seven Sisters, All-NEWMAC, All-New England and All-America. Finally, Sydney Carfagno, was named Wellesley Athletics Rookie of the year for her achievements in her first year on the volleyball team, including All-NEWMAC, All-Region and All-America selections. 

Several other individual award recipients were honored, including NEWMAC year and All-Conference award recipients, Seven Sisters honorees, Senior Scholar Athletes, and NEWMAC Academic selections. Additionally, regional and national award winners were recognized. In addition to the student-athletics celebrated, Brian Kuscher and Bonnie Dix were recognized for being named Tennis and Swimming and Diving NEWMAC Coaches of the Year respectively.

The event ended with the honoring of the basketball team as the recipient of the annual Blue Pride Award. The team was recognized for their continual demonstration of Wellesley pride and support of other athletics teams throughout this year.

2011-12 Wellesley College Athletic Awards

Friends of Athletics Recognitions
Wellesley College Athletics Honor Award: Dr. Joanne Borg-Stein
Linda K. Vaughan Award for Exceptional Service: Maria Finarelli ’90
 
Hauptfuhrer Scholar Athlete Award 
Finalists: Whitney Reid, Zsofia Schweger, Marie Watanabe
Hauptfuhrer Award Winner: Marie Watanabe

Outstanding Senior Athlete: Leah Clement, Cross Country/Track
Inspirational Award: Rosemary O'Connor, Squash
Rookie of the Year: Sydney Carfagno, Volleyball
Most Outstanding Contribution: Alex Hatem
 
Blue Pride Award: Basketball
 
All-American Athletes
Taylor Black '13, Crew
Randelle Boots '13, Cross Country, Indoor Track, Outdoor Track
Sydney Carfagno '15, Volleyball
Isabel Custodio '13, Volleyball 
Hayley Goydan '14, Diving 
Traci Hamanaka '14, Volleyball 
Keelin Nave '14, Swimming 

All-Region Athletes
Camille Basurto, Indoor Track
Randelle Boots, Indoor Track and Cross Country
Claire Canty, Lacrosse
Sydney Carfagno, Volleyball
Leah Clement, Cross Country
Isabel Custodio, Volleyball
Amanda Duritsch, Volleyball
Lauren Goldfarb, Softball
Nathalie Gruet, Field Hockey
Tracy Hamanaka, Volleyball
Emily Lewis, Field Hockey
Sojung Lee, Tennis
Whitney Reid, Field Hockey
Allison Robbins, Lacrosse
Marie Watanabe, Tennis
 
Seven Sisters Senior Scholar-Athlete Awards
Crew- Conisha Cooper and Shernaz Dossabhoy
Cross Country- Amy Wolkin and Cailey Stevens
Fencing- Zsofia Schweger
Field Hockey- Whitney Reid
Swmming and Diving- Allison Yee
Soccer- SJ Gray
Softball- Rachael Goldenberg
 
Seven Sisters Championships Honors
Crew - Taylor Black, Conisha Cooper and Sydney Dollmeyer (Novice)
Cross Country - Leah Clement and Molly Shanley
Swimming & Diving - Keeline Nave, Emma Mrkonic, Hayley Goydan, Annie Hamilton, Monica Gates, Veronica Lin, Olivia Hulme, Steph Welch, Maria Amirkhanashvili
Squash - Rosemary O’Connor and Emma Haley
Tennis - Diana Granger, Kendall Tada
Volleyball - Amanda Duritsch and Sydney Carfagno

All-Conference Awards 
Basketball- Malia Maier and Leslie Leong
Crew- Jessica Frey, Patty Suquilanda and Loren Lock
Cross Country- Randelle Boots and Leah Clement
Field Hockey- Nathalie Gruet, Emily Lewis, and Whitney Reid
Lacrosse- Claire Canty, Brit Mscisz, Allison Robbins
Softball- Lauren Goldfarb
Swimming & Diving- Keelin Nave and Emma Mrkonic
Squash- Rosemary O’Conner, CSA National Qualifier
Tennis- Marie Watanabe, Erica Choo, Melissa Clark, Diana Granger, Sojung Lee, Kendall Tada, Emily Bary and Joyce Chen
Track- Randelle Boots, Camille Basurto and Molly Shanley
Volleyball- Isabel Custodio, Sydney Carfagno and Amanda Duritsch
 

NEWMAC Cross Country Runner of the Year - Randelle Boots
NEWMAC Tennis Player of the Year ­– Marie Watanabe 

NEWMAC Volleyball Rookie of the Year – Sydney Carfagno
NEWMAC Field Hockey Rookie of the Year – Nathalie Gruet
NEWMAC Tennis Rookie of the Year – Melissa Clark
NEWMAC Lacrosse Rookie of the Year – Claire Canty

NEWMAC Coaches of the Year
NEWMAC Tennis Coach of the Year – Brian Kuscher
NEWMAC Swimming Coach of the Year – Bonnie Dix 

NEWMAC/CSA All-Academic Selections
Basketball - Malia Maier, Leslie Leong and Katie Shulenberger
Crew - Aidan Chambers, Conisha Cooper, Shernaz Dossabhoy, Kathryn Goffin, Senta Knuth, Tess Rudderman and Jennifer Lamy. 
Cross Country - Cristina Lucas, Sara Putterman, Skye Roberts, Sarah Roundy, Ada Smith, Cailey Stevens, Anna Tupper-Bridges and Amy Wolkin
Field Hockey - Alex Azzi, Kaitlyn Kirkaldy, Emily Lewis, Whitney Reid
Lacrosse - Alex Azzi, Kaitlyn Kirkaldy and Meredith Roy
Track and Field - Ali Grzywna, Skye Roberts, Sarah Roundy, Ada Smith, Cailey Stevens and Anna Tupper-Bridges
Soccer - Megan Turchi, SJ Gray, Ava Mokhtari and Emily Wilson
Softball - Kimberly Cabral, Rachel Goldenberg, Lauren Goldfarb
Squash - Cara Kaufman and Margo Sulmont
Swimming and Diving -  Kathryn Goffin, Hayley Goydan, Ika Kovacikova, Emma Mrkonic, and Allison Yee
Tennis - Kendall Tada and Raji Nagalla
Volleyball - Julia Adams and Kira Jordan