Seahawk Awards Ceremony capped by 20-minute tribute video

NEWPORT, R.I. – Salve Regina University held its 35th annual Seahawk Sports Award ceremony on Friday, April 29, at Bazarsky Lecture Hall in the O'Hare Academic Center.

Over 450 athletes from all 19 varsity teams gathered for a night to celebrate their accomplishments, both as teams and individuals. The ceremony was highlighted by the presentation of the major Seahawk Sports Awards, including the Seahawk Spirit Award, Meghan E. Strathman Award, Brother Michael Reynolds Award, Sister Philemon Banigan Award, Sportsmanship Award, Distinguished Scholar Athlete Award, and the Athlete of the Year Award.

Click here to watch the 20-minute tribute to the Seahawks (20:16).

Salve Regina sports information director Ed Habershaw emceed the event.

• Seahawk Spirit Award - Mary Cain (presented by Beth McCann)
• Sister Philemon Banigan Award - Jen and Rob McGuinness (presented by Ed Habershaw)
• Meghan E. Strathman Award - Nicole Parry (presented by Jess DiPolito)
• Brother Michael Reynolds Award - Danny Ives (presented by Kevin Gilmartin)
• RIAIAW Distinguished Student Athlete Abigail Tepper (presented by Jennifer Foster)
• Sportsmanship Award (female) - Molly O'Sullivan (presented by Jody Mooradian)
• Sportsmanship Award (male) - Peter Gintoli (presented by Parker Bowen)
• Christopher Kiernan Distinguished Senior Scholar Athlete Awards - Alexis Pike and Joseph Pate (presented by Jane Walsh and Craig O'Rourke II)
• Athlete of the Year (female) - Meaghan Harden (presented by Cori Hughes)
• Athlete of the Year (male) - Alex Hulme and Ryan Kelly (presented by Kevin Gilmartin and Eric Cirella)

The Seahawk Spirit Award, presented to an individual or group recognized by the college community for undying support, in a positive manner, for all Seahawk sports and athletes, was presented to Mary Cain (Montpelier, Vt.). Cain spent four seasons as a member of the Salve Regina field hockey team before becoming a two-sport athlete in the winter of her senior year. The women's ice hockey team was in desperate need of a backup goaltender and Cain volunteered without hesitation to fill that duty. "As a coach for many years I see players come and go and go through the motions. In this time I've learned that its not the length of time a player is with your team, but the quality of time and impact they demonstrate though the presence of that player," said women's ice hockey head coach Beth McCann. "The presence of Mary, for the brief time we had her on the roster was an amazing experience for the coaching staff, players and team as a whole. The passion, the desire, and the wiliness to sacrifice for her team and teammates was incredible."

The Sister Philemon Banigan Award, given to an individual who through his or her efforts and dedication behind the scenes makes a positive contribution to the intercollegiate athletics program, was presented to Jen and Rob McGuinness.  Jen volunteers her photographic skills, traveling to nine cross country meets and six track meets each year, and enduring all manner of weather conditions to ensure that the Seahawk runners, sprinters, jumpers and throwers are caught on camera. She works in rain, sleet and snow, through illness and injury, to document our competitions. And once the meets are over, she spends hours editing her work so that it can be posted to salveathletics.com and shared with athletes and parents. In addition to his coaching duties, Rob McGuinness contributes so much to the department 'behind-the-scenes' with his write-ups for his teams' events, and his photography coverage at numerous winter events which have included traveling to Norwich and Middlebury in Vermont, and Springfield, Mass. Rob's outstanding photos include championship events such as the ECAC Bowl Game for Salve Regina football at Central Connecticut. All of this is volunteering. He does not simply shoot pictures; he also takes care to edit the best before sharing. Our image archives are greatly enhanced by his and Jen's efforts over the last several years.

The recipient of the Meghan E. Strathman Award was Nicole Parry (Quincy, Mass.) This award was created to honor a student-athlete who demonstrates a commitment to academics and athletics and is actively involved in athletic department leadership opportunities, community service and other campus activities. Nicole has been a catalyst for the softball program for the past three seasons. She has been a two-year captain and sophomore year she was first team All-CCC and junior year she was second team All-CCC. She is a nursing major, therefore, has been balancing a demanding academic/clinical schedule and a vigorous softball schedule. She also has a long list of community service activities. For one, she helped organize the Relay For Life on campus and organized for the entire program to be apart of the event. She helped to raise $1,050.

Senior linebacker Danny Ives (Madison, Conn.) was the recipient of the Brother Michael Reynolds Award. This award is presented to a male student-athlete who has demonstrated a commitment to academic and athletic excellence and who has contributed to the overall development of the athletics program. Ives had a 4.0 GPA in the fall of 2015 and carries a 3.54 Cumulative GPA. He is a CoSIDA Academic All-America All District Team, 1st Team All-Conference in the NEFC as well as an Academic All Conference player for the third straight season. He was team Captain of an 8-2 Season that only had five returning starters 2015. Ives is a SAAC member, President of Salve Special Olympics March into Reading Participant - mandatory participation for his major as a junior, but he volunteered Sophomore, Junior and Senior Year. He holds the school record for career tackles with 283. He holds the second, third and fourth best marks for unassisted tackles in a season, the best being his 60 in 2013. He is a Special Education Major and has passed Teachers State Licensing in Rhode Island and Connecticut.

The Rhode Island Association for Intercollegiate Athletes for Women (RIAIAW) is an organization that recognizes distinguished female student-athletes competing at any of Rhode Island's nine intercollegiate athletic institutions. This years Distinguished Student Athlete is Abigail Tepper (Foxboro, Mass.).  Abigail has had a strong academic and athletic career at Salve. She has been a two sport athlete all four years (field hockey and women's lacrosse). She is an education major with a 3.823 GPA. During her field hockey career she has been recognized for many awards 2012-CCC Rookie of the Year, 2014-CCC First Team All Conference, 2015-Team Captain, CCC Offensive Player of the Year, CCC First Team All-Conference, and Division III All-Region Team New England East. She set a new school record this year for goals and points scored in a season. She is a four year NFHCA Academic Team honoree for lacrosse. "I had the opportunity to coach her two out of the four years she has played," said field hockey head coach Jennifer Foster. "Abby has worked my field hockey camp in the summer and is looking to get into college or high school coaching after graduation. She is competitive player who excelled at balancing her academic and athletic demands over four years. She has served as a role model for our underclassmen and has brought our field hockey program to a new level during her playing career."

The Christopher Kiernan Distinguished Senior Scholar Athlete Award is presented to the male and female student-athletes who have achieved the highest grade point average while participating in varsity athletics for four years. Alexis Pike (Smithfield, R.I.) of the women's soccer team and Joseph Pate (Smithfield, R.I.) of men's soccer are this year's distinguished senior scholars.

The Sportsmanship Award is presented to a male and female student-athlete who has earned the respect of fellow athletes, coaches, and administration for superior athletics and for continually demonstrating those qualities associated with good sportsmanship. The award is administered by the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) whose members nominate and vote for the recipients.

Honored by their schoolmates this year were two seniors - women's ice hockey forward Molly O'Sullivan (Willmington, N.C.) and men's ice hockey forward Peter Gintoli (Shelton, Conn.).

The evening culminated with the presentation of the Female and Male Athlete of the Year. This year, senior Meaghan Harden (Sandwich, Mass.) of the women's basketball team took home the female honor, and seniors Alex Hulme (Hopkinton, Mass.) of the football team and Ryan Kelly (Waldwick, N.J.) of the baseball team shared the honors of Male Athlete of the Year.

Harden's four years on the hardwood for the Seahawks includes a trip to the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) championship game (2013), the single-game record for points (45 in season-opener against Regis on November 15, 2014), and the all-time scoring mark in school history (1,945).

In the 2015-16 season, Harden led the Seahawks for the fourth straight season in scoring (17.1 ppg) and picked up the bulk of the rebounding chores as well, leading the team with 7.2 boards per game. She was selected first team All-CCC, NEWBA Senior Classic team, and named to the D3Hoops.com All-Region team.

"Meaghan Harden is a young woman of character and humility," said women's basketball coach Cori Hughes. "She is an extremely hard worker and fierce competitor; she is a good teammate and a kind person."

In 2015 Hulme passed Matthew Traynor's single-season receiving yardage mark of 944, set in 2013, and becomes the first 1,000-yard receiver (1,173) in program history. Hulme's 16 touchdowns in a season also established a new program record. Hulme owns the school record for touchdowns in a career (30) and for pass receptions (184). He was named an All-NEFC receiver, D3Football.com All-Region player, and took home MOP honors in the Seahawks 42-39 victory in the ECAC Clayton Chapman Bowl Championship, catching the game-winning touchdown with 58 seconds remaining.

Kelly, a four year starter and captain the past two seasons, currently leads the CCC in triples (6) and total bases (71). Kelly owns the Seahawks program record for triples in a career (19) and number of times being hit by a pitch (68). His seven doubles and four home runs to go with the six triples lead the Seahawks in extra-base hits (17) in 2016. Kelly is two triples away from the single season record with four more regular season games to go. Kelly was a Commonwealth Coast Conference Rookie of the Year in 2013 when he was 29-29 on stolen bases and a first team all-conference outfielder in 2013 and 2015. "

He does things that I can't even explain and he does them instinctively because he is a student of the game," said baseball head coach Eric Cirella. "He makes everyone around him better. And the better the competition or the bigger the game, the more he excels. As a captain and a leader, I may never have a player who does as much. He's an animal in the weight room and holds all players accountable to this standard. Probably pound for pound the strongest athlete at Salve. He is far more concerned with the team's success and has bought into every single thing I have told him over his career. I cannot say enough good things about him as a player, person, leader, captain, and teammate. What makes him the best athlete is the combination of all these things. He actually makes you want to work harder as a coach. And I have been privileged to coach him the past four years."

Click here to watch the 20-minute tribute to the Seahawks (20:16).