Thiel College student-athletes recognized during fourth annual Tommy Awards

GREENVILLE, Pa.—The Thiel College Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and the Department of Athletics hosted its fourth annual awards program for the College’s student-athletes, the Tommys, Tuesday at William A. Passavant Center.

The event recognizes individual and team athletic achievements, as well as academic success and service in the community, eight major awards were voted on and distributed by members of Thiel’s SAAC.

• See the complete list of winners.

Among the evening’s highlights was the announcement of the Most Valuable Players with Joey King ’25 and Ashlyn Wightman ’25 receiving honors. The men’s volleyball team also earned accolades for their impressive season and first NCAA Tournament berth. In addition, Randall Burnett M.A.’22 was named Coach of the Year for his outstanding leadership and contributions to Thiel College’s cheer and dance programs. The cheer team earned its fourth consecutive podium finish at Nationals with this year’s second place finish.

In addition, Chris and Heather Mook were honored with the SAAC Special Recognition Award for their volunteer hours supporting Thiel College student-athletes.

The following is a list of the eight major award winners:

MVP Honors

• Male: Joey King ’25
• Female: Ashlyn Wightman ’25

Newcomer of the Year

• Male: Ezra Oesterling ’28
• Female: Issy Green ’28

Coach of the Year

• Randall Burnett M.A.’22

Dual-Sport Athlete of the Year

• Male: Logan Smith ’27
• Female: Kayley Risser ’28

Adversity Award

• Jonah Lentz ’25

Moment of the Year

• Men’s volleyball PAC Championship

Team of the Year

• Men’s volleyball

SAAC Special Recognition

• Chris and Heather Mook

In addition to dishing out major awards, each team also honored and recognized their respective Tomcat Award winners while some named team MVPs. Those honorees are listed below.

Baseball

• Tomcat Award: Chase Morrison ’24 MBA’25

Men’s Basketball

• Tomcat Award: Gabriel Gonzalez ’25

Women’s Basketball

• Tomcat Award: Giana Arnese ’25

Cheerleading

• MVP: Karigan Hager ’26
• Tomcat Award: Kaitlyn Schmidt ’25

Football

• Tomcat Award: Luke Faber ’25

Men’s Golf

• Tomcat Award: Marc Knox ’25
  

Women’s Golf

• Tomcat Award: Alaina Harpst ’24 MBA’25

Men’s Lacrosse

• Tomcat Award: Thadd Bell ’24 MBA’25

Women’s Lacrosse

• Tomcat Award: Ashlyn Wightman ’25

Men’s Soccer

• MVP: Mitchell Strauss ’28
• Tomcat Award: Grant Becker ’27

Women’s Soccer

• Tomcat Award: Katlyn Phillips ’25

Softball

• Tomcat Award: Becca Landis ’25

Men’s Tennis

• Tomcat Award: Nate Udell ’25

Women’s Tennis

• Tomcat Award: Toby Atwood ’26

Men’s Track and Field

• MVP: Nick Kobielus ’25
• Tomcat Award: Griffin Fraterrigo ’27

Women’s Track and Field

• MVP: Alexis McFadden ’25
• Tomcat Award: Lillianna Briscoe ’24 MBA’25

Men’s Volleyball

• Tomcat Award: Kaleb Proudfoot ’26

Women’s Volleyball

• MVP: Danielle Aulet ’25
• Tomcat Award: Kailee Matter ’26

Wrestling

• MVP: Joey King ’25
• Tomcat Award: Seth Phillips ’25

Related Links

• Thiel College Athletics Hall of Fame
• Thiel College athletics

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About Thiel College

Thiel College is an independent college founded in the Lutheran tradition. Located in Greenville, Pa., the College offers 60 majors and minors, 24 varsity sports, and an 11:1 student-faculty ratio. The College is also home to a new Master of Science in speech-language pathology and 2Master of Business Administration. Both master’s degree programs offer innovative and accelerated five-year paths which allow students to earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree in five years. The speech-language pathology program also has an accelerated 15-month graduate-level program. The M.B.A. program also has a 12-month post-graduate program.A dedicated faculty paired with dynamic research and internship opportunities produce numerous graduate school and job placements. Coeducational from its beginnings, the College remains committed to combining tradition with innovation as it celebrates 150 years.