Staten Island, NY - With the 2023 College of Staten Island Commencement Ceremony coming up on Thursday, the 2022-2023 academic year officially comes to an end.  For CSI Athletics, the year will end with the department's annual Athletics award-winners reveal on social media.  Before the winners of the department's awards are announced beginning tomorrow, we take a look back at the last year of intercollegiate athletic competition and community engagement for CSI Athletics.  In addition to the numerous accolades collected by CSI student-athletes this year, several of the program's coaches have also chosen to name individual award-winners for their respective teams.  Those award-winners are revealed for the first time as part of our year-end recap below.

Soccer
Intercollegiate athletic competition returned to the College of Staten Island for the 2022-2023 season with the Men's Soccer home-opener on the final day of August in 2022.  In the home debut for new Head Coach Alex Cuba, the Dolphins picked up their first win of the season in a 1-0 shutout of Bloomfield College.  This would be the first of three wins for Men's Soccer on their home turf this past season, but the team was ultimately eliminated from playoff contention in their second-to-last game against Daemen University.  Women's Soccer returned to CSI just days after the home debut of the CSI men, but the team didn't pick up their first home win until they shut out the D'Youville University Saints in early October.  With a win against Lincoln University in late-October, the Dolphins remained alive in the ECC playoff chase heading into their final two games of the season.  However, they were also eliminated from playoff contention with a loss against Daemen in the penultimate game of their season.

Conference and Regional Accolades

Defensive Player of the Week Awards: Amari Thompson
ECC All-Conference Team Selections: Daniel Angulo (3rd Team), Nicholas Kishchenko (3rd Team)

Team Awards

Men's Soccer Offensive Player of the Year: Daniel Angulo
Men's Soccer Defensive Player of the Year: Steven Flores

Cross-Country Track & Field
CSI Cross-Country / Track & Field began their competitive schedule in early-September with the Cross-Country season coming to an end on November 19, 2022 at the NCAA East Region Cross-Country Championship.  Just two weeks later, the program began an Indoor Track & Field Season which saw the team set seven new program records.  Jazmine Severo took first in the High Jump at the ECC Championship to wrap up the season and was joined by Skylar Pointer in receiving ECC All-Conference First Team selections.  The Outdoor season saw another six new program records set by the Dolphins to go along with three more ECC All-Conference Team selections.

Conference and Regional Accolades

ECC All-Conference Team selections (Indoor): Jazmine Severo (1st Team - High Jump), Skylar Pointer (1st Team - Weight Throw, 1st Team - Shot Put) 
ECC All-Conference Team selections (Outdoor): Jazmine Severo (1st Team - High Jump), Skylar Pointer (1st Team - Hammer Throw), Ava Thompson (2nd Team - Discus)

Team Awards

Women's Rookie of the Year: Angelina Guerriero
Women's MVP: Jazmine Severo
Coaches Award: Skylar Pointer

Men's Rookie of the Year: Jamel Reynolds
Men's MVP: Matthew Amato
Coaches Award: Alan Bass

Swimming & Diving
CSI Swimming & Diving also had a record-setting year of their own which also saw them host the inaugural CSI Invite at the Sports & Recreation Center.  Since the start of 2023, eleven different program records fell including all of the previously held Women's Diving records.  At the 2023 METS Championship, which ended the team's season, the Dolphins continued to shatter program records including two on the first night of the event.  Less than one week ago, it was announced that CSI Swimming & Diving has been accepted for associate membership in the Northeast-10 Conference paving the way for an exciting future for the program.

Conference and Regional Accolades

Men's Swimming & Diving: First Place @ CSI Invite
CSCAA Fall Scholar All-America Team Selection

Team Awards
Most Valuable Divers: Jordan Swanson and Michael Graham
Most Valuable Swimmers: Jessica Johnson and Anthony Attenborough
Rookie of the Year: Brooke Manning and William Kwan

Basketball
It was an exciting year for fans of CSI Basketball as Men's Basketball became the first team to clinch a spot in the postseason since the Dolphins moved to Division II.  Days later in the final game of their season, Women's Basketball clinched a playoff spot and joined the men on the road in the opening round of the ECC Tournament at the University of the District of Columbia.  The CSI women picked up the first playoff win for any team since CSI made the move to Division II while a ferocious comeback bid fell just short for the men against the Firebirds.  Women's Basketball advanced to face Daemen in the second round where the team was eliminated by the Wildcats in the conference tournament semifinals.  In addition to a playoff spot, Men's and Women's Basketball also earned numerous individual accolades throughout the season.

Conference and Regional Accolades

ECC Rookie of the Week Awards: JJ Chestnut (4x)
ECC Defensive Player of the Week Awards: Messiah Mallory, Jenalyse Alarcon
ECC Player of the Week Awards: Messiah Mallory, JJ Chestnut, Chris Velasquez, Jenalyse Alarcon
ECC All-Conference Team Selections: Messiah Mallory (1st Team), Jenalyse Alarcon (2nd Team)
MBWA Player of the Week Awards: Messiah Mallory, JJ Chestnut
MBWA All-Met Second Team - Messiah Mallory, Jenalyse Alarcon

Team Awards

Player of the Year: Jenalyse Alarcon
Coaches Award: Ashley Lambert
Unsung Hero Award: Kaia Johnson and Elizabeth Lofaro

Baseball & Softball
As the Basketball playoffs were getting underway, CSI Baseball opened their season in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina before returning home for a four-game opening weekend at Staten Island University Hospital Community Park.  Just as opening weekend for Baseball concluded, Softball headed down to Florida for an eight-game stint at The Spring Games.  Following Softball's return to Staten Island, both teams prepared to begin conference play.  Baseball ultimately remained alive in the ECC playoff chase throughout the entirety of the season while Softball was eliminated in their second-to-last doubleheader of the year.  However, CSI Softball Head Coach Tracey Garofalo earned her 300th career win behind an improbable eight-run comeback in a Dolphins victory over American International College.  For Baseball, their most meaningful games came in their final series of the year against D'Youville University.  Needing four wins to lock up a playoff spot, the Dolphins split their four-game series with the Saints, and the season concluded with the Dolphins honoring their eleven graduating players on Senior Day.

Conference and Regional Accolades

ECC Rookie of the Week Awards: Christian Rice, Vincent Weigele
ECC Pitcher of the Week Awards: Alexandra Frenza, Ryan Kehoe (2x), John Esposito (2x)
ECC Player of the Week Awards: AJ Vigliotti (2x)
ECC All-Conference Team Selections: AJ Vigliotti (1st Team), John Esposito (1st Team), Ryan Kehoe (2nd Team), Alyssa Acosta (1st Team), Anissa Acosta (2nd Team)

Team Awards

Baseball MVP: AJ Vigliotti
Pitcher of the Year: John Esposito
Rookie of the Year: Vincent Weigele

Softball MVP: Anissa Acosta
Rookie of the Year: Alyssa Acosta
Defensive Player of the Year: Mariah Carcano

Cheerleading
CSI Cheer began the year by introducing two familiar faces to their coaching staff in new Head Coach Aurora Haxhari and Volunteer Assistant Coach Melissa Silverman.  The program also maintained a steady presence at CSI home events and in the local community, something that has been characteristic of the program for many years.  The program continues to play a major role in the introduction of STUNT at the College of Staten Island as well.  STUNT, an alternative format for competitive cheerleading, is quickly gaining traction in a bid to become an NCAA-recognized sport.  The emergence of STUNT on campus is just one of several avenues for growth of the program under its new leadership.

ESports
CSI ESports captured three more ECC Championships this year as they continued a run of success that has extended all the way back to the program's inception in 2020.  In late 2022, the Dolphins defeated Farmingdale State for the second straight season to capture what was their fourth-straight ECC Championship in Rocket League.   At the conclusion of that same season, the Dolphins won their first-ever conference championship in Overwatch 2 with a 3-0 series victory over NYIT.  One month ago, the Dolphins made it yet another ECC Championship in Rocket League as they defeated Farmingdale State in the ECC Grand Finals to win another conference title.  On the heels of that championship win, the Dolphins were invited to participate in the Collegiate ESports Commissioner's Cup in Texas to wrap up their season. CSI also captured an ECAC Championship in Hearthstone where Matthew Taylor scored a 3-1 victory over SUNY Canton to make it four overall championships for CSI Esports.

Community Engagement
In addition to the performance of the Dolphins in intercollegiate athletic competition, the program was active in strengthening their bond with the local community as well.  Throughout the season, the Dolphins hosted special events on gamedays, shared the gameday experience with local youth, and introduced new facilities that will benefit both CSI's student-athletes and the borough of Staten Island.
 
During the Women's Soccer season, the Dolphins hosted the first of many special events as the team worked alongside Morgan's Message to host their Mental Health Awareness Game.  Dolphins Jenna Como and Nadia Evola helped organize the event which featured Dolphin-themed giveaways and some words prepared by Como detailing her own struggles with mental health.
 
The next special event on the schedule was the 20th Annual CSI Tournament of Heroes hosted by Men's Basketball.  The event honors former Dolphins Terrance Aiken, Scott Davidson and Tom Hannafin, all of whom lost their lives on September 11, 2001.  The event welcomed in fans of the Dolphins along with family and friends of the honorees who were all treated to a postgame dinner following night one of the two-day event.
 
Once again during Basketball season, the Dolphins hosted Faculty/Staff Appreciation Night at The Tank in a celebration of both the local and campus community.  In addition to the faculty and staff members recognized by CSI Athletics at halftime of the Women's Basketball matchup against Queens, the team welcomed in local youth that got the chance to share the court with the Women's Basketball Team during pregame warmups.
 
In what was a huge milestone for the growth of CSI's Track & Field program, the ribbon was cut on a new Track & Field complex in March of 2023.  Speakers at the event included former assemblyman Michael Cusick, CSI Interim Vice President for Economic Development and Community Partnerships Robert Wallace, Interim President of the College of Staten Island Dr. Timothy G. Lynch, CSI Athletics Hall of Famer Jeff Benjamin, and CSI Director of Athletics and Recreation Chase Licata.  The facility will not only benefit CSI's student-athletes, but the entire Staten Island Track & Field Community will be able to make use of the new complex.  The new facility also further cements CSI increasing status as a destination campus for Track & Field Athletes throughout the region.
 
The following month, CSI Baseball hosted their inaugural Heroes Day which saw a massive crowd assemble at the CSI Baseball Complex for the team's doubleheader against Alliance University.  In a pregame ceremony, late heroes Steve Sosa, Anthony.Iraci, and Anthony Varvaro were honored as the Dolphins took the time to remember the impact they had on ther lives of those who knew them.  The event which followed featured raffles, food trucks and other fundraisers aimed at setting up scholarships in the name of each hero being honored.  The Dolphins took the win in both games against the Warriors and the event gave the program a great opportunity to engage with the Staten Island community on a large scale.
 
The final event on the calendar for CSI Athletics in 2023 was the CSI Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.  Hosted at the Sports & Recreation Center, the event saw six new inductees welcomed into the Athletics Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2023.  Joe Barresi, Pat Daddio, Kaitlynn Flynn, Melissa Gelardi, Jordan Young, and Tony Petosa became the hall's newest members as family, friends, some former teammates, and others they have impacted all gathered to celebrate their careers.
 
In addition to the program's engagement with the community through special events, CSI Athletics signed a pair of young student-athletes to their roster by partnering with Team Impact.  Men's Basketball welcomed seven-year old Bryce while Swimming & Diving signed ten-year old Micah last week.  This continues a longstanding effort to keep local youth involved with CSI Athletics and continues the program's partnership with Team Impact that has extended back many years.
 
With another year of competition behind CSI Athletics, the most important event on the calendar is yet to come as the College of Staten Island Commencement will take place on Thursday.  Leading up to that event, the winners of the Athletics department's annual awards will be announced on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of next week.  The schedule for the release of those award-winners will be as follows.
 

Monday

Bob Steele Sportsmanship Award

Comeback of the Year

Moment of the Year

Distinguished Service Award
 

Tuesday

Breakout Player of the Year

Male Rookie of the Year

Female Rookie of the Year

Team GPA Award
 

Wednesday

Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year

Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year

Male Athlete of the Year

Female Athlete of the Year