This June would have featured the 35th annual Athletic Awards Dinner at Townsend Harris. Each year, all athletes are invited to attend the event where awards are presented to the top players of each team, as well as awards for the entire school. Athletic Director Lauren Caiaccia reached out to The Classic to reveal the winners of the Athletic Awards, despite the absence of a formal event.
This year, three-sport athlete Julia Hong, and boys basketball player Zachary Fisher received the Most Outstanding Athlete awards.
The Most Outstanding Athlete award is the highest award of the program, and takes into consideration each team at Townsend Harris. Julia was a member of three different teams: bowling, basketball, and softball. When asked about her reaction to the award she said, “I feel honored and humbled because I never played sports with the desire to win an award but out of love for sports.” Julia was also grateful for her coaches and said, “they helped me grow into the person I am today.”
Zach was a four year member of the basketball team, and was one of the team captains this year. He helped guide the team to an undefeated regular season and two playoff wins, to cap off his career at Townsend Harris.
Athletic Director Lauren Caiaccia talked about the selection process for the top athletes, and said, “These various awards for seniors are meant to recognize standout performers that add value to their team or teams. Typically award winners are student-athletes that are leaders on and off their respective playing fields.” She added, ”This year’s award winners embody the Hawk spirit, and have shown a willingness to learn, a dedication to their respective teams, and a commitment to practice. Julia Hong and Zachary Fischer are examples of what is meant by our mantra #TownsendHarrisStrong. We welcome them to the elite group of former ‘Athletes of the Year’ and to our alumni Hawks family.”
In addition to these awards, girls tennis player Hope Ha and boys fencing member Jonathan Tran were recognized with the Outstanding Academic Average award. Hope was also the Valedictorian of the Class of 2020.
Jonathan commented on the balance between fencing and academics, and said that it “was always tricky because putting time into one felt like taking time out of the other. Maintaining academic excellence while being committed to a team was a struggle at times, but learning to manage my time better and working a bit harder made it an enjoyable experience.”
Ms. Caiaccia noted that many students with strong academic records often participate in athletics. Ten of the top fifteen seniors with the highest academic averages were also athletes, according to Ms. Caiaccia (see below for more).
Ms. Caiaccia also left a message for all of the athletes, which you can read here.
The rest of the athletes that were awarded are listed below.
2020 Athletic Awards
Fall Teams:
Boys Badminton
Andy Ng, Co-MVP
Vincent Lian, Co-MVP
Wilson Chu, Most Improved
Andrew Fu, Coaches Award
Boys Bowling
Nicholas Rao, MVP
Dinesh Mulani, Most Improved
Daniel Shi, Coaches Award
Liam Dolphin, Rookie of the Year
Girls Bowling
Jacqueline Woo, MVP
Jasmine Sahai, Most Improved
Dawn Lugo, Coaches Award
Madison Skow, Rookie of the Year
Boys Fencing
Javah Xie, MVP
Ian Patino, Most Improved
Adam Ganpat, Most Improved
Jonathan Tran. Coaches Award
Girls Varsity Volleyball
Zoe Tylipakis, MVP
Nicole Monaco, Most Improved
Olivia Jablonski, Coaches Award
Samantha Liu, Coaches Award
Girls Junior Varsity Volleyball
Emily Blickhahn, MVP
Bereylne Chalas. Coaches Award
Alexandra Yick, Coaches Award
Boys Soccer
Rohan Iyer, MVP
Tre Roberts, Most Improved
Dillon Guludec, Coaches Award
Adam Hammond, Rookie of the Year
Girls Soccer
Kayla Seepersaud, MVP
Angelina Kretz, Most Improved
Victoria Fraczek, Coaches Award
Amelia Ferrell, Rookie of the Year
Girls Swimming
Jiaqi Zhu, MVP
Kelsey Miu, Most Improved
Emily Yan, Coaches Award
Kylie Chang, Rookie of the Year
Girls Tennis
Rachel Zhang, MVP
Fay Wong, Most Improved
Lori Eng, Coaches Award
Janelle Quidala, Rookie of the Year
Boys Cross Country
Trent Santoro, MVP
Shawn Edelstein, Most Improved
Denion Prifti, Coaches Award
Reid Tujak, Rookie of the Year
Girls Cross Country
Chloe Munoz, MVP
Nikki Chang, Most Improved
Hallie Lai, Coaches Award
Kate Estevez, Rookie of the Year
Winter Sports
Boys Basketball
Jahdon Jerome, MVP
Harman Singh, Most Improved
Zachary Fisher, Coaches Award
Matthew Cantor, Rookie of the Year
Girls Basketball
Julia Hong, MVP
Roisin Smith, Most Improved
Olivia Biedrzycki, Coaches Award
Shelly Gulkarov, Rising Star
Girls Junior Varsity Basketball
Berelyne Chalas, MVP
Aissatou Lam, Most Improved
Michelle Wu, Coaches Award
Boys Indoor Track
Jake Chang, MVP
Itamar Hindi, Most Improved
Jason Guerra, Coaches Award
Diego Pacheco, Rookie of the Year
Girls Indoor Track
Ifeoluwa Adedokun, Co-MVP
Nicole Wong, Co-MVP
Ikeoluwa Adedokun, Most Improved
Julia Xia, Coaches Award
Erica Jin, Rookie of the Year
Co-Ed Wrestling
Jayden Tavares, MVP
Ryan Rivera, Most Improved
Xander Izower, Coaches Award
Justin Linzan, Rookie of the Year
Girls Table Tennis
Sydney Ho, MVP
Jia Qi Pan, Most Improved
Jaime Tran, Coaches Award
Sophia Park, Rising Star
Special Awards
Most Outstanding Male Athlete – Zachary Fisher (Basketball)
Most Outstanding Female Athlete – Julia Hong (Bowling, Basketball, Softball)
Top Male Athlete in an Individual Sport – Andy Ng (Badminton) and Noah Pearlstein (Tennis)
Top Female Athlete in an Individual Sport – Rachel Zhang (Tennis) and Elizabeth Brandwein (Fencing)
Top Male Athlete in a Team Sport – Calvin Tan (Volleyball)
Top Female Athlete in a Team Sport – Kayla Seepersaud (Soccer)
Most Improved Male Athlete – Trent Santoro (Track) and Javah Xie (Fencing)
Most Improved Female Athlete – Nicole Monaco (Volleyball) and Carine He (Track)
Outstanding Academic Average – Hope Ha (Tennis) and Jonathan Tran (Fencing)
In addition to Hope and Jonathan, we recognize the following students who fill out the rest of the list of top 10 “academic athletes.” Each of these students also ranks academically in the top 15 of their class: Esther Chai (Swimming), Cathy Chen (Wrestling), JiaQi Pan (Table Tennis, Handball), Carine He (XC, Indoor, Outdoor), Tina Chen (Volleyball, Indoor, Outdoor), Julia Xia (XC, Indoor, Outdoor), Emily Tan (XC, Indoor, Outdoor) Jamie Tran (Table Tennis, Handball)
George W. Wingate Memorial Certificate (awarded to a graduating scholar athlete who participated on a male PSAL team during the school year for outstanding athletic improvement, scholarship and character) – Rohan Iyer (Soccer)
Louisa Wingate Underhill Certificate (awarded to a graduating scholar athlete who participated on a female PSAL team during the school year for outstanding athletic improvement, scholarship and character) – Kelsey Zhen (Basketball, Flag Football)
PSAL Graduation Certificate (awarded to a graduating scholar athlete who participated on a PSAL team during the school year for outstanding achievement in athletic improvement, leadership, and school service, as well as character.) – Westar Zong (Bowling, Volleyball)
PSAL City Champion – Andy Ng (3x City Champion in Badminton)
PSAL City Champion – Emily Tan (City Champion in Girls Track Race Walk)