FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Five Different Institutions Represented.

MANSFIELD, Mass. – The Northeast-10 Conference recognized seven outstanding student-athletes from the fall season as Sport Excellence Award winners on Wednesday afternoon, honoring their remarkable achievements both inside and outside the classroom. 

Among the 108 student-athletes named to the NE10 Academic All-Conference Teams last week, the Sport Excellence Award is given to one top individual from each of the league's seven fall sports. Five different institutions were represented in the announcement, with only Adelphi producing multiple winners.

The Sport Excellence Award, one of the Conference's most prestigious honors, was won by three student-athletes who also took home NE10 Player of the Year recognition: Adelphi's Morgan Salmon (Women's Soccer Defensive Player of the Year), Franklin Pierce's Wondu Summa (Men's Cross Country Athlete of the Year) and Pace's Krista Dietz (Field Hockey Player of the Year). 

Additional honorees are Adelphi's Victor Castel (men's soccer) and Noelle Alberda (volleyball), Assumption's Jake Cady (football) and Southern New Hampshire's Kelsey Seamans (women's cross country). Each athlete was an All-Conference selection following the fall season. 

Three of the seven winners - Alberda, Dietz and Salmon - earned All-America honors in 2023. Dietz was an NFHCA First Team All-American, Salmon was D2CCA and United Soccer Coaches Second Team All-American and Alberda was an AVCA Honorable Mention All-American. 

To be eligible for Academic All-Conference and Sport Excellence honors, a student-athlete must have started at least half or played in two-thirds of all contests while making significant contributions and maintaining a 3.3 grade-point average (GPA) on a 4.0 scale.

For more information on each Sport Excellence honoree, please see below.

FIELD HOCKEY

Name: Krista Dietz
School: Pace
GPA: 3.76
Major: Digital Cinema & Filmmaking
Notes: NFHCA First Team All-American...NFHCA East Region Player of the Year...NE10 Player of the Year...Won two statistical championships from the NCAA this season in assists per game (0.67) and points per game (2.95)...Led all of Division II in goals (24), assists (14), assists per game (0.67), points (62) and points per game (2.95)...Recorded 11 points against New Haven, which was the most points scored in a single game by any Division II player this season...Two-time Academic All-Conference recipient...2022 NFHCA Academic Team Award member. 

FOOTBALL

Name: Jake Cady
School: Assumption
GPA: 3.37 (Undergraduate) / 3.85 (Graduate)
Major: Business Administration
Notes: NE10 Second Team All-Conference as a quarterback...Won the New England Football Writers Association (NEFWA) Gold Helmet Award for Sept. 11...Completed 110 passes on 172 attempts, racking up 1,159 passing yards with 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions...Totaled 177 rushing yards and three touchdowns, including a long rush of 50 yards...Tallied 334 passing yards and five touchdowns in a single game against Southern Connecticut...Helped Assumption win the 2022 NE10 Football Championship, as he threw for over 1,600 yards and 12 touchdowns, while running for 635 yards and eight touchdowns. 

MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY

Name: Wondu Summa
School: Franklin Pierce
GPA: 3.43
Major: Health Sciences
Notes:  USTFCCCA East Region Athlete of the Year...NE10 Men's Cross Country Athlete of the Year...Three-time NE10 Men's Athlete of the Week...Earned first place in four different races during the fall season, including the NCAA DII East Region Cross Country Championship and the NE10 Championship...Qualified for the NCAA Championship and placed 87th overall in Joplin, Missouri...Three-time NE10 First Team All-Conference...USTFCCCA All-Academic selection in 2021. 

WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY

Name: Kelsey Seamans
School: Southern New Hampshire
GPA: 4.0 (Undergraduate) / 4.0 (Graduate)
Major: Professional Accountancy
Notes: USTFCCCA All-East Region...NE10 First Team All-Conference...Competed in seven meets during the fall season and finished in the top 10 in five of them...Finished fourth at the NE10 Championship and eighth at the NCAA East Regional Championship...Qualified for the NCAA Championship and placed 190th...USTFCCCA All-East Region in 2021 and 2022...2022 NE10 First Team All-Conference...2021 NE10 Third Team All-Conference...USTFCCCA All-Academic in 2021 and 2022.

MEN'S SOCCER

Name: Victor Castel
School: Adelphi
GPA: 3.935
Major: Marketing
Notes: NE10 First Team All-Conference...CSC Second Team Academic All-American...CSC Academic All-District...One-time United Soccer Coaches Division II National Player of the Week...One-time NE10 Player of the Week...Tallied seven goals and a team-high 17 points for Adelphi in 2023...Ranked among the top 10 scorers in the NE10 for both goals and points, netting three game-winning goals throughout the season...Scored multiple goals in two games this year...2022 NE10 Third Team All-Conference.

WOMEN'S SOCCER

Name: Morgan Salmon
School: Adelphi
GPA: 3.852
Major: Nursing
Notes: D2CCA and United Soccer Coaches Second Team All-American...CSC First Team Academic All-American...D2CCA and United Soccer Coaches First Team All-Region...NE10 Defensive Player of the Year...NE10 First Team All-Conference...Led Adelphi to its first NCAA Division II East Region Championship and Final Four appearance since 2004...Helped the defense record 13 shutouts this fall, with five of those coming in the postseason...Counting just the postseason, Salmon led Adelphi's defense in going a total of 221:17 minutes without surrendering a goal...D2ADA Academic Achievement Award winner in 2021-22 and 2022-23. 

VOLLEYBALL

Name: Noelle Alberda
School: Adelphi
GPA: 3.928
Major: Exercise Science
Notes: AVCA All-America Honorable Mention...AVCA First Team All-Region...NE10 Second Team All-Conference...Set career-highs with 321 kills (second most in the NE10) and a .244 hitting percentage...Tallied a career-best 25 kills on a .389 attack percentage to help seal Adelphi's first NE10 regular season championship since 2015...Ranked among the conference's top 10 leaders in kills per set (2.94) and points per set (3.29)...D2ADA Academic Achievement Award winner in 2022-23. 

ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 12 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.

Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.