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Somerset, NJ -- Two student-athletes from Central Connecticut State, along with one apiece from Fairleigh Dickinson, Long Island, Monmouth, Quinnipiac, Robert Morris and associate member Lock Haven comprise the 2004 Valley National Bank Fall Scholar-Athlete award winners for the Northeast Conference. In addition to the scholar-athletes, the NEC also announced its fall Valley National Bank Academic Honor Roll, consisting of 390 student-athletes. All scholar-athlete award winners must have earned a minimum of 60 semester hours, maintained a minimum cumulative grade-point-average of 3.20 and have participated with distinction as a member of a varsity team.
Quinnipiac graduate student Tom Martin (Commack, NY/Commack) collects Valley National Bank scholar-athlete honors in men’s cross country. A three-time all-NEC performer, Martin was the 2004 NEC individual champion - clocking in at 25:57.5 - and helped lead the Bobcats to their first league title running on their home course in October. The two-time NEC Cross Country Athlete of the Week went on to finish 43rd out of 229 runners at the NCAA Northeast Regional meet at Van Cortlandt Park the following month, crossing the tape in 32:18.3. Earlier in the season, Martin claimed all-New England honors after placing 13th at the New England Championships in Boston. The team’s SAAC representative, he has participated in a number of community service initiatives under the school’s Positive Play banner. A Health Sciences major, Martin maintains a 3.39 grade point average.
Monmouth junior Kristin Wallace (Oswego, NY/Oswego) earns the Valley National Bank scholar-athlete award for women’s cross country. Wallace earned all-NEC honors for the second straight year by finishing seventh at the 2004 conference championship meet, covering the 5K race in 19:21.7. She also logged top-ten finishes at the Monmouth Kickoff (second), Monmouth Invitational (third), Delaware Invitational (sixth) and Quinnipiac Invitational (seventh). Wallace also took part in a host of community service projects, including serving as a Student Ambassador for the Monmouth open house, providing sport training at the St. Jerome School, collecting money for holiday gifts for the Cerebral Palsy School, delivering gifts to the needy at the Pan Am Hotel in Eatontown, NJ, and assisting with the Michael Thorne Scholarship run and Saturday in the Park Race to benefit the Women’s Center of Monmouth. With a double major of Education and Psychology, Wallace carries a 3.94 grade point average.
Lock Haven senior midfielder Katie Stewartz (Boyertown, PA/Boyertown) is recognized for her performance on and off the field as the Valley National Bank scholar athlete in the sport of field hockey. Stewartz was tabbed to the all-NEC first team after she helped propel Lock Haven to the NEC regular season crown in the school’s first year as an associate member of the conference. The team captain tallied three goals and ranked third in the conference with eight assists as the Lady Eagles finished with a perfect 8-0 record in league play and were 19-1 overall in their initial Division I campaign. Stewartz was also named NEC Player of the Week on October 11. A three-time NFHCA National Academic Squad member, Stewartz has posted a 3.81 grade point average as a Health & Physical Education major.
Robert Morris senior linebacker Jonathan LeDonne (Aliquippa, PA/Aliquippa) is this year’s winner of the Valley National Bank scholar-athlete award for football. LeDonne, who was recently named a first team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America, finished second on the Colonials in 2004 with 74 tackles, including 31 solo stops. An ironman who did not miss a game over four years, he also registered the first three interceptions of his career this past season (returning two for touchdowns), forced a team-best four fumbles and had 12 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. Off the field, LeDonne is a member of the Society of Manufacturing Engineering (SME), the Robert Morris Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and the St. Titus Holy Name Society. A two-year member of the NEC Academic Honor Roll and a two-time Academic All-District honoree, the Aliquippa, PA native is just the second Colonial in school history to earn Academic All-America recognition. A Manufacturing Engineering major, LeDonne has maintained a perfect 4.0 grade point average throughout his career at Robert Morris.
Fairleigh Dickinson junior midfielder Nadav Gottesman (Haifa, Israel/M. Fleiman) is recognized as the Valley National Bank co-scholar athlete in the sport of men’s soccer. Gottesman earned first team all-NEC honors for the second consecutive season as the Knights captured their fourth NEC regular season championship in the last five years and reached the NEC title match for the fifth year in row. He ranked third on FDU with four goals and was the Knights’ fourth-leading scorer with nine points. Gottesman, who has played on two NEC championship teams, was named the NEC, ECAC and BigAppleSoccer.com Player of the Week after scoring his first two goals of the season in a pair of road victories on October 15 and 17. A CoSIDA Academic All-America a year ago, the Haifa, Israel native was recently tabbed to the 2004 CoSIDA All-District second team. Gottesman, whose off the field efforts include participating in visits to children at Hackensack University Medical Center, has recorded a 3.93 grade point average as a Management major.
Long Island senior defender David Ledet (New Orleans, LA/Vanderbilt Catholic) collects Valley National Bank co-scholar athlete honors in men’s soccer. Ledet, who earned first team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America honors in November, was a vital cog on a Long Island defensive unit that limited conference opponents to just five goals this season en-route to the program’s first NEC championship since 1997. Offensively, he was credited with three assists, raising his career total to 14. In four years, he helped the Blackbirds reach the NEC title match three times. Ledet was recently awarded a fellowship with the Center for the Study of the Presidency, one of just 65 undergraduate and graduate students to earn the year-long opportunity to study the U.S. Presidency. This past summer, the New Orleans, LA product interned with the Institute of International Education, where he worked with the Scholar Rescue Fund, a program that provides support and safe haven to scholars around the world who are threatened as a result of their academic vocation. Additionally, he was one of only 15 students among several New York City colleges to receive a Jeannette K. Watson Fellowship in 2003. The honor was bestowed on individuals who possessed the necessary traits - through leadership and creativity - to aid in developing a stronger society. A double major in English and Political Science, Ledet carries a 3.88 grade point average in the University Honors Program.
Central Connecticut State senior goaltender Sabrina Mariani (Quebec, Canada/Bishop Whelan) captures her second consecutive Valley National Bank scholar-athlete award for women’s soccer. Despite missing half of the season with an injury, Mariani was selected as an ESPN The Magazine Third Team Academic All-America for the second straight year. Mariani was also chosen to the all-New England third team in 2004 after she compiled a 1.17 goals against average and two shutouts. For her career - which included three league titles, as well as an MVP performance at the 2003 NEC Championships that led to an NCAA first round win over Boston College - she sported a 1.23 goals against average in 56 starts. Mariani’s career save percentage of .778 and 211 saves rank her second all-time on the CCSU career chart. She is a three-time Academic All-District honoree who was named the inaugural NEC Student-Athlete of the Year as a sophomore. A Finance major who is the President of the Central Connecticut State Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Mariani maintains a 3.95 grade point average.
Central Connecticut State senior middle blocker Jen Cote (Powell River, BC/Brooks Senior Secondary) is the Valley National Bank scholar-athlete for women’s volleyball. In 2004, Cote earned first team all-NEC honors for the third time in her career and made her fourth overall appearance on one of the league’s postseason all-star teams. One of the key components on a Blue Devils squad that won 15 straight matches at one point and finished with a 20-8 record, Cote ranked second in the league in hitting percentage (.378), third in kills (3.97 kpg) and ninth in blocks (0.83 bpg). She was subsequently selected to the CoSIDA Academic All-District I first team for the second year in a row. Away from the court, she has tutored Biology and served as an Academic Mentor for CCSU student-athletes, assisting them with study strategies and time management skills. Cote, who hauls from Powell River, British Columbia, has also participated in the Reading Is A Hit With CCSU Volleyball Program held at nearby Jefferson Elementary School, assisted in house renovation as part of the volleyball program’s relationship with Habitat For Humanity and prepared and served meals at The Friendship Center Soup Kitchen in New Britain, CT. A Biology major, Cote has posted a 3.86 grade point average.
Northeast Conference 2004 Valley National Bank Fall Scholar-Athletes
Sport Name School Cl GPA Major
Men’s Cross Country Tom Martin Quinnipiac Gr 3.39 Health Sciences
Women’s Cross Country Kristin Wallace Monmouth Jr 3.94 Education & Psychology
Field Hockey Katie Stewartz Lock Haven Sr 3.81 Health & Physical Education
Football Jonathan LeDonne Robert Morris Sr 4.00 Manufacturing Engineering
Men’s Soccer Nadav Gottesman FDU Jr 3.93 Management
David Ledet Long Island Sr 3.88 Political Science & English
Women’s Soccer Sabrina Mariani CCSU Sr 3.95 Finance
Women’s Volleyball Jen Cote CCSU Sr 3.82 Biology