FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Six Different Institutions Represented.
MANSFIELD, Mass. – Following the winter season, the Northeast-10 Conference has recognized seven outstanding student-athletes as Sport Excellence Award winners on Thursday morning.
Among the 72 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 winter sports. Six different institutions were represented in the announcement, with only Bentley producing multiple winners.
The Sport Excellence Award, one of the Conference's most prestigious honors, was won by two student-athletes who also took home NE10 Player of the Year recognition: Franklin Pierce's Briahna Bouchard (Women's Indoor Field Athlete of the Year) and Saint Michael's David Ciancio (Ice Hockey Co-Defensive Player of the Year).
Bentley's Maggie Whitmore was the only honoree to earn All-America recognition, as she was named Honorable Mention All-American by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). Southern New Hampshire's Matt Becht (men's basketball), Adelphi's Cooper Rivers (men's swimming & diving), Bentley's Jordan Nuzback (women's swimming & diving) and Southern Connecticut's Hunter Dale (men's indoor track & field) also took home Sport Excellence awards.
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.
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Name: Matt Becht
School: Southern New Hampshire
GPA: 3.634 (Undergraduate) / 3.734 (Graduate)
Major: MBA with concentration in Sport Business
Notes: NABC East All-District First Team...D2CCA East All-Region Second Team...NE10 All-Conference First Team...NCAA East Regional Most Outstanding Player...NCAA East Regional All-Championship Team...NE10 Championship Most Outstanding Player...NE10 All-Championship Team...Started in all 34 games for SNHU, averaging 16.4 points on 43.9 percent shooting - including 45.2 percent from three-point range...Led the nation in three-pointers made and ranks eighth in three-point field goal percentage...Led the East Region in three-pointers made and free throw percentage...Led the NE10 in three-pointers made, three-point field goal percentage and free throw percentage...129 three-pointers made are the most in a single season in program history...NABC East All-District First Team in 2023...NE10 All-Conference First Team in 2023 and Third Team in 2022...Two-time member of CSC Academic All-District Team...Three-time NE10 Academic All-Conference selection.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Name: Maggie Whitmore
School: Bentley
GPA: 3.58
Major: Management
Notes: Team captain...NE10 All-Conference First Team...WBCA Honorable Mention All-America for the second time...D2CCA East All-Region Second Team...CSC Academic All-District Team...Helped lead Bentley to its third-consecutive NE10 Championship title and the top seed in the NCAA East Regional...Played in 31 games, averaging 12.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists per contest...Led the nationally-ranked Falcons in scoring, free throw percentage, free throws made and free throws attempted, while ranking second in rebounds and third in assists...Surpassed the 1,000-point milestone in her 88th career game...Topped the NE10 in free throw percentage for the second straight year...Ranked fourth in the league in defensive rebounds...Holds an 85.7 free throw percentage for her career, which is a school record...Three-time NE10 All-Conference pick...Most Outstanding Player of the 2023 NE10 Women's Basketball Championship.
ICE HOCKEY
Name: David Ciancio
School: Saint Michael's
GPA: 3.85
Major: Business Administration/Accounting
Notes: NE10 Co-Defensive Player of the Year...NE10 All-Conference First Team...Team captain...Played in 29 games, recording eight goals, 11 assists, 68 blocked shots and six powerplay goals...Tied for third in the NE10 in powerplay goals and ranked fourth among NE10 defensemen in points...Won the NE10 Elite 24 Award in 2023...D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award winner in 2023.
MEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING
Name: Cooper Rivers
School: Adelphi
GPA: 3.652
Major: Biology
Notes: NE10 individual champion in the 200 and 400 individual medley...NE10 relay champion in the 400 free relay...Three-time NE10 Relay of the Week recipient...Set a new school record in the 400 IM...Medaled and set an NCAA "B" Cut in the 200 yard free...Swam alongside the winning 400 free relay and placed third in the 800 free relay at the NE10 Championship...Earned a spot on the podium in the 200 and 400 IM at the ECAC Winter Championships...Broke four individual school records and two relay records over the course of the 2023-24 season...NE10 Rookie of the Year in 2022...Two-time selection to the NE10 Academic All-Conference team...D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award in 2023.
WOMEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING
Name: Jordan Nuzback
School: Bentley
GPA: 3.74
Major: Corporate Finance and Accounting
Notes: Two-time NE10 Swimmer of the Week...Won a silver medal in the 200 IM, the 200 medley relay, the 400 medley relay and the 800 free relay at the NE10 Championship...Sixth in the 100 free...Third-fastest time in the 200 IM in the NE10 this season at 2:07.34...Won gold in the 200 IM at the 2023 NE10 Championship, along with silver in the 200 medley relay and bronze in the 200 and 400 free relays...Two-time NE10 Academic All-Conference recipient...CSC Academic All-District in 2023...Won six medals at the 2022 NE10 Championship, including gold in the 200 IM and 400 medley relay.
MEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Name: Hunter Dale
School: Southern Connecticut
GPA: 4.0
Major: Exercise Science
Notes: NE10 Indoor 4x400 Relay champion...NE10 Indoor 400m bronze medalist...NEICAAA Indoor 500m champion...2023 NE10 Outdoor Championship 4x400 Relay champion...2023 NE10 Outdoor Championship third-place finish in the 400 hurdles...2022 NE10 Indoor Championship silver medal in the DMR and bronze medal in the 4x400.
WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Name: Briahna Bouchard
School: Franklin Pierce
GPA: 3.82
Major: Health Sciences
Notes: NE10 Indoor Field Athlete of the Year...USTFCCCA All-Region in the pentathlon...Gold medalist in the pentathlon at the NE10 Indoor Track & Field Championship...Fourth place in the 60 hurdles at the NE10 Indoor Track & Field Championship...First in 55 hurdles at USM Husky Invitational...First in triple jump at USM Husky Invitational...Third in 200m at USATFNE Season Opener.
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.
