Staten Island, NY | In the middle of winter, sometimes there is no greater place to be than in the CSI pool, which provides the comforts of warmth as we take in another turn from a couple of great programs that continuously make their mark in competition and in the classroom. There was a lot of focus on this year's unit especially, with the infusion of great new talent, among them women's standout Morgan Novello, who joins the Dolphins fresh off of a great career locally while attending Notre Dame Academy on Staten Island.
For Novello, the decision to attend the College of Staten Island over some high-profile institutions like Widener University, Arcadia University, and Sacred Heart University was a rather natural one. It afforded her the opportunity to get a world class education while continuing her love for the sport she has grown up in.
"I chose CSI because it allowed me to keep swimming which I love while also having the major and career path that I wanted and was close to home," Novello said directly. The backstroke and freestyle specialist had familiarity with CSI's pool, and knew the campus was just a stone's throw from her home in the Eltingville section of Staten Island.
For Head Coach
Michael Ackalitis, Novello's decision afforded him an opportunity to continue the mission of the program, to continuously raise the competitive bar of the unit, doing it side-by-side with excellence in the classroom. Novello finished in the top eight for both the backstroke and freestyle events at the 2019 city championships, won by her alma mater. She is a Coaches Award winner with the Gators, while also swimming competitively with the Trident Aquatic Club for the past five years.
"Morgan is someone who just fits really well into our program," said Ackalitis. "She's a local kid with a great personality and she's going to add a lot to the comraderie our team has. Competitively, she's going to add a lot to our our relay teams, and will challenge those that were competitive on those relay teams and that's what we want. It's great for the overall growth of the program. She has that competitive drive that makes everyone better."
But Ackalitis also knows it takes a certain trademark of student to fit in nicely on his teams. The Women's Swimming & Diving unit is consistently among the most highest-achieving academic teams at CSI, and it doesn't happen by accident, as Ackalitis continues to seek out student-athletes with the disciple and commitment it takes to earn accolades in the classroom in what is a two-semester sport, and Novello is no different. The future Physical Therapy major was part of the National Honor Society and Spanish National Honor Society, was awarded the Florence Nightingale Math Award at NDHS, and is a recipient of the Peter F. Vallone Scholarship at CSI. She is also very focused on what she wants to do after college. "I want to be in the medical field helping athletes and people gain back their strength," she commented.
That sense of purpose was part of what attracted Ackalitis to Novello during the recruiting process. He contends that many of his best students make for his best athletes in the pool too, and expects Novello to carry that same energy in both arenas. "Obviously, academics is very important to us," commented Ackalitis. "We feel a lot of the qualities of being a great student are transferable to the pool. Being dedicated to those early morning practices, staying on schedule, being on time and accountable, it goes hand-in-hand to what students need in to do to be successful in the classroom. When a student like Morgan brings that to the table in the classroom, you know she is going to be that way in the pool, and it's what we strive for."
Novello is off to a flying start. This past fall, she achieved a 3.92 GPA juggling 16 credits, and she knows that while the swimming part of her career is on halt, achieving honors in the remote classroom world is how she can show she is all-in with the program and the high bar it sets for itself. "I feel I can have an impact on the current CSI program by having the best attitude in the pool and in the classroom," she remarked. "I want to show others how great this opportunity can be."
That opportunity is what attracted her to CSI in the first place. Her academic record could have landed her virtually anywhere, according to Ackalitis, but a major part of the appeal of coming to CSI was the ability to further her career with swimming, and the coach is excited to see her grow in that area as well. "We want people in this program who
want to be here, who want to get better and who want to use swimming to get them through college and help them grow individually, and Morgan gets that," said her coach. "Having that mentality is great for a swimmer, great for the student, and ultimately helps us grow as a program as we transition to NCAA Division II."
Naturally, with COVID-19 sidelining her and her teammates' progress, Novello is anxious to get underway, but notes that her coaches and teammates are doing a great job of getting her acclimated and breaking up the monotony of online learning and the virtual world. "Being part of the team in these conditions is hard but it is so great to have teammates reach out through text and calls," she said. "Our team meetings are a great way to see everyone and start to create a bond before meeting back in the pool."
Novello also has another built-in advantage, and that has been the ability to continue to train with her club team at Staten Island's Wagner College, and more recently, the local JCC. It will insure her that when she is allowed into the CSI waters, she can be as fresh as ever. "Luckily, I have been able to keep swimming with Trident, so I have been able to keep swimming and stay in decent shape," she remarked. "This has helped me get ready for our next and my first college season."
That type of resolve is what is making the coaches excited about Novello and the other new faces entering the program, even if they won't make their competitive debut until the 2021-22 season. Their focus and drive to be the very best in everything they do has not been stalled, although much of everyday life for a college athlete has. For Novello, she knows she will have to wait to make her official debut on campus, but is keeping her goals simple and her approach towards them strong. "I am looking forward to bonding with my team and coaches and swimming really fast with great training," she said.
Born and raised in Staten Island, Novello lives at home with her parents, Allison and Gerard, and has a younger brother, Gerard, who plays basketball at Mater Dei High School.
Coaches and players alike can't wait to get back in the pool at CSI, and with due time, Novello and her peers will. When they do, it should make for exciting times on the Willowbrook campus. Novello made the choice to come to CSI, and the Dolphins will be better for it.
