CSM Celebrates Student Athletes for Successes in Their Sport and in the Classroom

College of Southern Maryland (CSM) Hawks who made exceptional contributions to the college’s athletics program were celebrated at an end-of-year athletic banquet held at the Waldorf Jaycees earlier this month.  

Coaches and athletic department staff recognized the successes of student athletes and supporters, handing out the annual Male Athlete of the Year, Female Athlete of the Year, Scholar Athlete of the Year, and Wings of the Hawk awards, as well as awards for individual sports. 

The athletes were nominated by head coaches in recognition of athletic ability, and the winners were voted on by the entire athletic staff.  

“I want to thank this tremendous group of athletes that we have here in the room,” said Fitness Center Coordinator Darrick Sesker during his opening remarks.  “You all showed up week after week and put forth an effort that you all should be proud of.” 

The Female Athlete of the Year award was presented to Abby Norris of the women’s softball team. Women’s Softball Coach Keith Sanderson said that Norris is not only an exceptional player – having been named to the NJCCA Region 20 Division 11 second team and the All Maryland JUCO first team in 2023 and nominated for 2024 – but is more importantly an important supporter of her teammates and CSM athletics overall. 

“From the very first day I took this job and spoke with Abby, I knew I had a player who would do everything in her power to provide anything to her teammates and coaches that she possibly could to make this program a success,” Sanderson said. 

Head Baseball Coach Bradley Sullivan announced that Yunior Pena received the Male Athlete of the Year award.  

Sullivan shared that Pena was an important member of the team’s offensive lineup, batting third and leading the team in batting average, hits, and runs batted in. He also played an important defensive role in the shortstop position. In addition to this, he was a leader for his teammates both on and off the field. 

Director of Fitness and Athletics Gabrielle Smallwood introduced the winner of the Scholar Athlete of the Year award as softball player Madison Jury. This recognition is awarded to second-year student-athletes who completed at least 36 credit hours and earned the highest cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA). 

In her first year at CSM, Jury participated on both the volleyball and softball teams. She also works as a pharmacy technician and a tutor at CSM. Despite her busy schedule, Madison's dedication to her studies has allowed her to maintain a perfect 4.0 GPA. Upon graduation, she shared that she plans to attend the University of Georgia with hopes of becoming a pharmacist.     

Smallwood also presented two supporters of CSM athletics with the Wings of the Hawk award, which is given to someone who is not directly involved in athletics but goes above and beyond for CSM student-athletes and the athletic department. 

The first recipient of this award was Darrin Briscoe, CSM's assistant superintendent of Building Services. 

“Although his department was short-staffed when the PE building reopened, he ensured that the building's needs were met,” Smallwood said. “He never fails to ask how the teams are doing and even came out to support our athletes at a few sporting events. This person has a kind soul, and we are all thankful for everything he did for us this past year.” 

The second award went to CSM alum and former CSM volleyball player Rachel Marino. Marino volunteered to keep the book for volleyball during the team’s fall and winter seasons. She is also a tutor at CSM who devoted some of her time working in the tutoring center to our athletes, providing them with any academic support they may have needed. 

“This year would not have gone as smoothly if Rachel had not assisted and volunteered her time to better CSM athletics,” said Smallwood. 

Individual teams also presented awards to the year’s standout players. Below are the recipients of Team Awards:   

 Golf 

Player of the year: Blake Nichols 

Most Improved: Mason Chandler  

Hawk Award: Vincent Kruzska 

Volleyball 

Coaches Award : Jasmine Powell 

Defensive player of the year: Katy Swanson 

Women’s Soccer 

Defensive Player of the Year: Brooke Portzen 

Offensive Player of the Year: Megan Hinton  

Men’s Soccer 

Most Valuable Player: Eliass El Fasoukhi 

Offensive Player of The Year: Nomen Felix 

Women’s Basketball:   

Most Valuable Player: Angeleen Mulero  

Defensive Player of the Year: Lillian Reynolds   

Men’s Basketball 

Most Valuable Player: Ryan Blakey 

Offensive Player of the Year: Reggie Washington 

Softball 

Offensive MVP: Lexi Drayer 

Defensive MVP: Tess Murphy 

Baseball 

Hawk Award: Cody Cox 

Hawk Award: Jaden Hendrick