SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – Notre Dame College's Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) celebrated the seventh Falcon Excellence in Sport Performance Yearly Awards, or FESPYs, on Monday, May 25, in the Regina Auditorium.

The FESPYs were celebrated on the campus of Notre Dame College for the first time since 2019. Awards were handed out to recognize the top athletes, teams and moments throughout the 2021-22 sports seasons. Students made their way into the auditorium, taking photos with teammates and friends, before grabbing pizza and wings from Georgio's.

Donations were made throughout the night to raise money for Make-A-Wish and NDC men's golfer Sean Kukoleck's cancer treatment.

Volleyball's Amelia Kaeberlein was named the Female Athlete of the Year. Kaeberlein led the team with 626 digs and 6.2 digs per set, which is second in a single season in program history. She was also third on the team with 116 assists. For her career, she finished with 1,460 digs, which puts her fifth in NDC history. Along with being awarded the President's Award a month ago, she was named First Team Academic All-District by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

Men's swimmer Ashton Smith was named Male Athlete of the Year. Smith became the first NDC men's swimmer to be named Mountain East Conference Swimmer of the Year. During the season he was named MEC Swimmer of the Week twice as he swam in seven events including, the 50, 100 and 200 Freestyles as well as the 200 IM, 200 Free, 400 Free and 400 Medley Relays. At the GMAC/MEC Championships, Smith helped his team win their third consecutive title. He was crowned conference champion in the 50, 100 and 200 Freestyles along with the 200 Free Relay. In addition, he claimed Second Team All-MEC in the 200 IM and 400 Free Relay, while receiving Honorable Mention All-MEC in the 400 Free Relay.

Team Performance of the Year went to women's rugby. After going winless the previous year, the Falcons won 11 games this past fall. In the Division I National Collegiate Rugby Tournament, NDC defeated No. 13 Roger Williams and No. 9 Colgate and advanced to the Semifinals. They lost to No. 1 ranked Northern Iowa but bounced back to defeat No. 3 Marquette, by a score of 42-14 in the Third Place Match.

"After a long two years of not having this event, I knew this FESPYs needed to be a rememberable one, and that it was," SAAC President Delaney Gasaway exclaimed. "I cannot thank the board, Lydia Healy, my VP, Alyssa Kuntz, my Treasurer, and Darese Sparkman, my Secretary, for all the hard-work they put in, not only to this, but SAAC. A huge thank you to Senior Woman Administrator Kelsey Stopp, our overseer and mentor this year, who has done more than I could have ever asked for. Lastly, I need to thank Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Swain for supporting me in everything that I wanted to do."
 

"The FESPYs were a true celebration of all Falcon athletic achievements," Swain said. "This event gave us an opportunity to once again bring all of our student-athletes, and staff together to celebrate another great year in NDC athletics. With a two year hiatus due to COVID it was wonderful seeing everyone together again.  The enthusiasm our Falcon student-athletes showed was a wonderful example of the great pride of NDC Athletics."

Listed below are the award winners from the FESPYs:

Unsung Hero: Delaney Gasaway (women's swimming), Lukas Hackaa (men's soccer)
Spirit of the Falcon: Men's Rugby
Sportsmanship: Madison Luckett (women's soccer), Nathan Moore (football) 
Rookie of the Year: Louisa Follert (women's soccer), Alex Dicke (baseball)
Biggest Upset: Women's swimming at the MEC Tournament
Perseverance: Alana Ellis (women's basketball), Sean Kukoleck (men's golf)
Play of the Year: Carlos Almeida's bicycle kick (men's soccer)
Athlete of the Year: Amelia Kaeberlein (volleyball), Ashton Smith (men's swimming)
Coach of the Year: Ben Morhac (Women's Lacrosse)
Faculty of the Year: Natalie Strouse
Women's Top Team GPA: Volleyball
Men's Top Team GPA: Baseball
President's Award: Amelia Kaeberlein (volleyball), Ben Ross (baseball)
Team Performance of the Year: Women's rugby