Department News

Monday, October 5, 2009

EIGHT STUDENTS TO RECEIVE 2008-09 HONORS AT ANNUAL AWARDS CEREMONY ON FRIDAY

MEDFORD -- Eight Tufts University students who represent the best of the outstanding 2008-09 Year in Jumbo Sports were recognized for their achievements at the Tufts University Athletics Department's Annual Awards Ceremony on October 9 at Cohen Auditorium.

The award winners are nominated by their coaches and athletics staff members, and voted upon by a committee. D.J. Hessler (Monkton, MD/St. Paul's) of the men's lacrosse team will receive the Clarence "Pop" Houston as best male athlete. The Hester L. Sargent Award for best female athlete has two recipients: Stephanie McNamara (North Attleborough, MA/North Attleborough) from the cross country and track teams and Maya Ripecky (Chicago, IL/Northside) of the volleyball and softball teams. The Rudolph J. Fobert Award for best multi-sport athletes will be presented to Jesse Faller (Burlington, MA/Burlington) of the cross country and track teams and Amanda Roberts (Wenham, MA/Phillips Exeter) from field hockey and lacrosse. David Katzman (North Andover, MA/St. John's Prep) of the baseball team and Tamara Brown (Annandale, VA/W.T. Woodson) from the field hockey team earned the Murray Kenney Awards for positive attitude and persistence. The Timothy J. Horgan Award for sports writing will go to David Heck (Bronxville, NY/Choate Rosemary Hall) of the Tufts Daily.

The recipients received their awards in front of their peers at the Annual Awards night. After the student awards, Tufts University Athletics presented its 2009 Distinguished Achievement Award to Roberta "Bobbi" Gibb, a pioneer in women's marathon running.

D.J. Hessler

Stephanie McNamara

Maya Ripecky

Hessler won the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) scoring title in a landslide as a sophomore last spring. His 42 goals and 47 assists for 89 points in 18 games were 16 points more than the league's second-leading scorer. He set new Tufts records for assists and points in a season, breaking both of those marks by wide margins as well. With an average of 4.94 points per game, Hessler was the fifth highest scorer in the nation. He was selected to the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association's All-America Second Team and was also an All-NESCAC and All-New England First Team honoree. Coach Mike Daly's Tufts team, which earned its second NCAA Tournament berth last year, was in the national 10 offensively with nearly 14 goals per game behind Hessler's lead.

McNamara was an All-American in three seasons as a sophomore for Coach Kristen Morwick's women's cross country/track & field program. In the winter, she anchored the indoor team's distance medley relay to a second straight NCAA Division 3 national championship. McNamara edged a University of St. Thomas runner at the finish line by 0.08 seconds. She then came back the next day to finish as the runner-up in the 5,000 meters. Though inexperienced in the 10,000 meters race, McNamara broke the school record and finished as the runner-up in the event at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. She also qualified nationally in the 1,500 meters and in the 5K for the spring season. Her track year also featured four conference and regional titles. In the fall, McNamara finished 11th at the NCAA Cross Country Championship Race.

Ripecky was the leading hitter on the Tufts Softball team, which finished fourth in the NCAA Tournament, and was also a regular for the NCAA Tournament qualifying Jumbo Volleyball team. A Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division 3 All-America Second Team pick, Ripecky's .477 batting average broke a 24-year old Tufts softball record last year. A 2009 Tufts graduate, she also established new team marks in hits, runs, doubles and total bases. An All-NESCAC and NFCA All-New England First Team selection, Ripecky helped Coach Cheryl Milligan's Tufts squad win its first 35 games and finish with a 44-3 record that is one of the best in NCAA Softball history. For Coach Cora Thompson's volleyball team, Ripecky played in all 33 matches and was among the team's leaders in digs and service aces. The Jumbos finished 29-4, giving Ripecky's teams a combined 73-8 record for the 2008-09 seasons.

Amanda Roberts

Jesse Faller

Faller had three All-American performances and broke two school records as a junior on Coach Ethan Barron's men's cross country/track & field teams in 2008-09. He was a two-time All-American at the NCAA Indoor Championships, running the anchor leg for the distance medley relay (DMR) foursome that placed third nationally and finishing fourth in the 5,000 meters individually. He also won a second straight New England Division 3 title in the 3,000 meters and was part of a school record DMR run at the All-New England meet. For the cross country season, Faller was an All-American for the second straight year and crossed the finish line as the runner-up at the NCAA New England Championship race. Outdoors, he broke the Jumbo program's 1,500 meters record and was an NCAA qualifier in the 5,000.

Roberts was an All-American for the field hockey and women's lacrosse teams, which both made impressive NCAA Tournament runs. A Longstreth/National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Third Team All-American in field hockey, her talent as two-way player helped Coach Tina McDavitt's team advance to the NCAA Championship Game. She was also selected to the NFHCA All-New England First Team and to the All-NESCAC Second Team. With 54 goals scored in lacrosse, Roberts led Coach Carol Rappoli's Tufts team and was second in NESCAC. Voted to the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association/US Lacrosse All-America Second Team, she was also very responsible defensively with an average of 1.26 caused turnovers per game. A First Team All-Region and All-NESCAC pick as a sophomore, she helped the Jumbos reach the NCAA Quarterfinals.

Dave Katzman

Tamara Brown

An exemplary student with a double major in computer engineering and economics, Katzman is a 2009 graduate who epitomized what Tufts is all about. His community involvement included founding Jumbo Promotions, a club dedicated to promoting Tufts Athletics throughout the community. His organization designed innovative ways to get the Tufts and local community to support Tufts Athletics. Katzman was elected by his peers to be the chair of Tufts' Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) for two consecutive terms, and he also served on the NESCAC SAAC. He was selected to attend the NCAA National Student-Athlete Development Conference in Florida last May. The starting center fielder for Coach John Casey's baseball team, Katzman's class played in the NESCAC championship game in three out of four seasons.

Brown overcame a devastating knee injury during her first season to smash the field hockey team's scoring record as a sophomore last fall. After tearing her ACL and missing the post-season with the team in 2007, she had surgery during winter break and came back to school ready to work hard and get back on the field. She received clearance from her doctor to play in August and returned to the team in tremendous shape. Brown scored a hat trick in the first game and never looked back. She finished with 28 goals and five assists for 61 points, 20 points more than the previous record. She received NFHCA All-America Second Team honors after the Jumbos lost the NCAA Championship Game in overtime. A child development major, Brown gives 100-percent in the classroom and on the field.

A tireless worker who was willing to take on an extra assignment at the Daily, Heck covered the Tufts baseball, men's basketball, men's cross country, football, men's track and field, women's soccer and women's track and field teams last year. He also wrote a sports column called "The Sauce." His promotion to managing editor for this year is an indication of the quality of his work as well as the dedication he's shown.

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