SCSU, Franklin Pierce and Adelphi Make Huge Marks in Postseason Awards
MANSFIELD, Mass., - Southern Connecticut State dominated the men's postseason honors while Adelphi made waves on the women's side as the NE10 announced the league's indoor track and field major awards on Wednesday. Honors were voted on by the league's coaches.
Winners on the men's side at the NE10 Indoor Track & Field Championship this winter, SCSU claimed Men's Field Athlete of the Year (Cameron Belton), Men's Track Rookie of the Year (Sam Sandler) and Men's Coaching Staff of the Year (John Wallin). Franklin Pierce's Stephen Harris and New Haven's Matthew Steele earned Track Athlete of the Year and Field Rookie of the year respectively.
Harris had a dominant performance at the NE10 Championship, winning the league title in the 60m dash, 200m dash and high jump. Harris broke the NE10 Championship record in the 200m in both the prelims and the final. His 21.0 time in the final is the top time in the event across NCAA DII this season.
Harris is the third FPU athlete to win Men's Track Athlete of the Year since the award was first given out in 2014. Prior to that the NE10 honored one "Track & Field Athlete of the Year" each season.
Belton, repeating in winning this award from last season, hucked the shotput 17.8m at the NE10 Championship this winter, claiming gold and setting an NCAA Championship qualifying mark. Belton will compete at the NCAA Championships (along with Harris) later this month.
Steele was the head of the snake for New Haven's triple jump squad at the NE10 Championships. The Chargers swept the podium in the event, headlined by the freshman jumping 14.2m in Boston, best in the league this season.
Finally, Sandler finished just off the podium in both the 200m and 400m at the conference meet. He ran this past weekend on SCSU's 4x400 team that won at the NEICAAA Indoor Track & Field Championships.
This is the 10th Coach of the Year for John Wallin and his staff at SCSU.
On the women's side Adelphi cleaned house after their runner-up finish at the NE10 Championship. An NCAA Championship qualifier, Katherine Marsh is the 2024 NE10 Track Athlete of the Year for the second year in a row. Her relay teammate, also heading to the NCAA Championship, Carly Koprowski is the league's Track Rookie of the Year. Panther, and NE10 high jump champion, Lindsey Wilson is the Field Rookie of the Year and Katie Rees is the 2024 Coach of the Year for the first time in her career.
The lone non-Adelphi name to claim a major award this indoor season is Franklin Pierce's Bri Bouchard, the NE10 indoor Pentathlon champion. She is the first Raven to raise that trophy since Paola Brena in 2020 and this marks the third straight year a multis athlete as been named Field Athlete of the Year in the conference.
For Marsh, the honor marks the second consecutive season she's been named Track Athlete of the Year. She's the third repeat winner of the award in conference history and the first since Merrimack's Carly Muscaro in 2017.
Marsh had the top time in the 200m, 800m, Mile and DMR this season in the NE10 and ranked top three in the 3k, 4x400 and 4x800.
The Adelphi rookie pair triples the Panthers to have won Track or Field Rookie of the Year in program history. The only previous Panther female freshman to win a league major award was Victoria Major in 2017.
������������ ���������� & ���������� ������������@SCSU_Owls' Cameron Belton repeats as Field Athlete of the Year, @FPUAthletics' Stephen Harris wins track honor to headline NE10 2024 season awards.
— The NE10 (@TheNortheast10) March 6, 2024
Full Details ➡️ https://t.co/E3Ob9vxrHC#NE10EMBRACE I #NCAAD2 pic.twitter.com/ymRCgug4ie
������������ ���������� & ���������� ������������@AUPanthers' Katherine Marsh is a two-time Indoor Track Athlete of the Year, headlines NE10 2024 season awards.
— The NE10 (@TheNortheast10) March 6, 2024
Full Details ➡️ https://t.co/E3Ob9vxrHC#NE10EMBRACE I #NCAAD2 pic.twitter.com/gz4lmTYuRD
Track Athlete of the Year
Stephen Harris, Franklin Pierce
Katherine Marsh, Adelphi
Field Athlete of the Year
Cameron Belton, Southern Connecticut
Bri Bouchard, Franklin Pierce
Track Rookie of the Year
Carly Koprowski, Adelphi
Matthew Steele, New Haven
Field Rookie of the Year
Lindsey Wilson, Adelphi
Sam Sandler, Southern Connecticut State
Track & Field Coaching Staff of the Year
John Wallin & Staff, Southern Connecticut State
Katie Rees & Staff, Adelphi
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.
