At the end of each academic year, The Dartmouth’s sports section puts up players and moments to be voted upon by the student body as the best of the best. In this year’s The D Sports Awards, five of the top rookies, five of the top female athletes and five of the top male athletes are pitted against each other, the winners emerging only after a popular vote by members of the Dartmouth community. In order to vote, students and community members must go to the link below to cast a single vote before Wednesday, May 23 at 12 p.m. The winners will be announced on Friday, May 25 in the next issue of The Dartmouth.
Vote at: https://bit.ly/2wTLXFU
Rookie of the Year:
Dan Martin ’21 (Men’s Tennis)
Dan Martin ’21, a Laval, Quebec native, proved to be a cruicial addition to the Big Green tennis team, which finished the season 20-6 overall after falling to No. 33 the University of Oregon in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Division I Men’s Tennis Championship. In his first season, Martin played in the No. 2 and 3 position all season and finished the season with a 13-12 singles record and 5-3 doubles record alongside partners Ciro Riccardi ’18 and All-Ivy First Team members Charlie Broom ’20 and David Horneffer ’20. After an impressive start for the team, where the Big Green went 12-0 and were nationally-ranked at No. 14 for a while, Martin also made it to the National singles rankings for a few weeks, the highest point being at No. 101. His impressive achievements this season were affirmed when he was the only Big Green rookie and one of three first-years selected to the All-Ivy League Second Team for singles.
Jason Liu ’21 (Men’s Golf)
Hailing from Windsor, Connecticut, Jason Liu ’21 quickly proved to be an asset to the team as he boosted the second-lowest scoring average for the Big Green at 74.3, only behind captain and All-Ivy League First Team member Ian Kelsey ’18, who finished the season with an average of 74.2. Liu finished the season with two top-10 finishes: one at the Macdonald Cup, where he finished ninth out of 81 golfers, and the other at the Cornell Spring Invitational, where he finished fourth of 19. In his final tournament of the season, Liu finished tied for 13th at Ivy League Championship with a final round of 67, which was the lowest round by any golfer in any of the three rounds. Liu was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Year and is the third recipient of the title for Dartmouth since the award was first given in 2009. With Liu being added alongside former winners Peter Wiliamson ’12 and John Lazor ’19, the Big Green hold the most Rookie of the Year titles of any other program in the Ivy League.
Katharine Ogden ’21 (Women’s Nordic Skiing)
Katharine Ogden ’21, a Vermont native who previously skied at the Stratton Mountain School, has made a name for herself during her first season with the Big Green. Despite battling an illness during the first half of the season, Ogden quickly bounced back as she won five straight races, including both contests at the Middlebury College Winter Carnival. Ogden has also proven herself on the national stage. During the 2018 NCAA Skiing Championships, Ogden took not one, but two national titles home in a single year — something a Big Green skier has not done in 56 years — and was also the first woman ever to win a cross-country race for the Big Green. Ogden swept the NCAA women Nordic races, finishing the 5K Classic 46.9 seconds ahead of the nearest racer, and winning the 15K Freestyle with a 37.6 second buffer. With Ogden’s contributions, the Big Green maintained its position in third place with 448.5 points, its best finish in seven years, and won four individual events at the NCAA Championships for just the second time ever. Ogden’s impressive showing this year was affirmed when she was named to the Women’s All-East First Team and also earned the title of EISA Women’s Nordic Rookie of the Year,and Women’s Classic Leader.
Lilly Durbin ’21 (Women’s Rugby)
Center Lilly Durbin ’21, from Murrieta, California, has been a dominant force throughout the season. Durbin came to Dartmouth with much experience on the international stage as a member of the USA Women’s Sevens National Team and has toured with them to countries such as France and Japan, while also captaining the USA Rugby U20 National Team on multiple international tours. During the 15s season, Durbin led the team in scoring with six recorded tries for 30 points, double the next teammate, Idia Ihensehkien ’21, who recorded 15 points. During the 7s season, Durbin also led the team in scoring with 25 tries and 17 conversions for a total of 171 points, 71 points ahead of next teammate, co-captain and former The Dartmouth’s Female Athlete of the Year Frankie Sands ’19.
Schae Nelson ’21 (Softball)
Catcher and utility player Schae Nelson ’21 from Montgomery, Texas has had a stellar showing in her first year with the Big Green, which finished its season 22-18 overall and 16-5 in conference. Nelson finished the season fifth on the team and leading the first-year players in batting average with .294 on the season and a .386 average in conference action. Nelson leads rookies in several categories, including runs, hits, RBI, doubles, home runs and walks. She finished the season with 26 hits, including five doubles and is fourth on the team in home runs with five. From her impressive rookie season, Nelson was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Year and to the All-Ivy First Team.
Female Athlete of the Year:
Cha’Mia Rothwell ’20 (Women’s Track & Field)
Cha’Mia Rothwell ’20 blew away the competition with her Dartmouth record-breaking times. Coming off a stellar first-year, the Durham, North Carolina native had another fantastic season showing Big Green fans just how much better she had become. Last year, Rothwell broke four Dartmouth records in the long jump (20 feet, 3 inches), 60-meter hurdles (8.30 seconds), 60-meter dash (7.45 seconds) and 100-meter hurdles (13.23 seconds). Her 8.30s 60-meter hurdles time was an all-time Ivy League meet record. This season, Rothwell smashed her three past records in the 60-meter hurdles (8.28 seconds), long jump (20 feet, 7 inches) and 100-meter hurdles (13.24 seconds). Rothwell was named the Most Outstanding Field Performer for the second year in a row during the Women’s Indoor Ivy League Championships, as well as to the First Team All-Ivy for the 60-meter hurdles and long jump and to the Second Team All-Ivy for the 200-meter dash. For the outdoor season, Rothwell was named to the First Team All-Ivy for the 100-meter hurdles and Second-Team All-Ivy for the long jump.
Christine Honor ’19 (Women’s Hockey)
Goalie Christine Honor ’19 has served as a stable force for the Big Green, starting all but one of the team’s games this season. She has made 818 saves while only allowing 83 goals for a .908 save percentage and 3.50 goals against average. She ranks first in the Dartmouth record books for most saves in a season and is the only goalie in Dartmouth history to make over 800 stops. Although the team finished the season with a disappointing record of 4-19-3, Honors finishes first in the league and fifth in the nation in saves. One of her best performances was her 61 saves in the win over Quinnipiac Univeristy, which remains the NCAA record for most stops in a shutout. At the conclusion of this stellar season, Honor was named as an All-Ivy League Honorable Mention. This award was the first career postseason recognition for Honor, the only Big Green player to be recognized.
Cy Lippold ’19 (Women’s Basketball)
Cy Lippold ’19 has emerged as a key contributor this year for Dartmouth women’s basketball despite only packing a height of five-feet-two-inches. Lippold, from the Bronx, New York, is the second-lead point contributor, averaging 12.3 points per game at point guard, while leading the Ivy League with 5.3 assists per game and snatching the fifth-most steals per game in the League. Lippold has made a meteoric rise this season. Previously, Lippold scored averages of 1.1 and 2.1 points per game and averaged 6.7 and 7.9 minutes per game her first two seasons, respectively. She started all 27 games this season while leading the 15-12 Big Green to its first ever wins over Atlantic Coast Conference and Pacific-12 teams.
Ellie Carson ’20 (Women’s Lacrosse)
In an exciting season for the women’s lacrosse team, Ellie Carson ’20, an attacker from Alexandria, Virginia, emerged as a clear offensive leader for the Big Green in her second season, leading the team in goals, points and shots. Her average of 3.19 goals and 6.19 shots per game puts Carson at fifth in the Ivy League. On four separate occasions, against the University of Albany, Columbia University, Cornell University and University of Massachusetts, Lowell, Carson scored at least five goals per game for the team. Carson also became just the eighth player in program history to reach the 50 point mark in a single season, and recorded at least one goal in every game this season until an injury put an end to that streak. For her effort, Carson was named to the All-Northeast Regional First Team, one of only two Big Green players to be recognized.
Kristina Mathis ’18 (Women’s Tennis)
Kristina Mathis ’18 had an immediate impact on the Dartmouth women’s tennis team since her freshman year, where she was named All-Ivy First Team for doubles and the Most Improved on the team. She was awarded the All-Ivy First Team in doubles again her sophomore and junior years, and along with partner Taylor Ng ’17, became the first Dartmouth duo to qualify for the NCAA Doubles Tournament. During her junior year, she helped lead the team to a share of the Ivy League Title, the Big Green’s first since 2011. Going into her final season, Mathis’s game continued to improve. In the No. 1 singles position, she went 23-13 overall and 12-7 in dual matches, finishing the year nationally ranked at 107. Her stellar singles play allowed her to qualify for the 2018 NCAA Singles Championship, which begins on May 23. As a result of her impressive play, she was named the Ivy League Player of the Year as a unanimous selection and earned a spot on the First Team All-Ivy singles team.
Male Athlete of the Year:
Alvin Heumann ’18 (Men’s Squash)
From his hometown of Southport, Conneticut, captain Alvin Heumann ’18 has left behind a decorated legacy in the men’s squash program. He has improved his record in the No. 1 spot each year, starting 2-7 in his freshman year, jumping to 7-4 in his sophomore year, finishing 9-8 in his junior year and going 11-7 as a senior. This season, he also competed in the College Squash Association Individual Championships in March, falling in the second round. He was named to the All-Ivy First Team for his final two seasons, the College Squash Association All-American team and the Harrow Squash Player of the Week.
Devin Buffalo ’18 (Men’s Hockey)
After an outstanding senior season, Devin Buffalo ’18 was chosen by his teammates to receive the Phelan Award as the Team MVP and was recognized with a spot on the All-Ivy League Second Team. After missing five weeks due to injury, he bounced back as one of the top goalies in the league, finishing the season with a .906 save percentage and a 2.84 goals-against average. Buffalo did not make a single appearance as a freshman and did not make his collegiate debut until the season debut his sophomore year. He ended up appearing in five games, posting a 1-2-1 team record. He made a significant jump his junior year, starting in 29 games and posted 758 saves on 847 shots to record a 89.5 save percentage. He had a season-high 48 saves at Quinnipiac University on Nov. 11.
Buffalo was also one of 11 nominees for the 2018 Humanitarian Award, which is awarded to a college hockey student-athlete who makes significant contributions to the team as well as the larger community through leadership in volunteerism. He spent significant time this past summer in Canada, volunteering at the World Indigenous Games, North American Indigenous Games and the Alberta Indigenous Games.
Dustin Shirley ’18 (Baseball)
Hailing from Los Angeles, California, Dustin Shirley ’18 has had a major impact on the baseball team as well as off the court. He was named as a top-10 draft prospect in the Ivy League for 2018 by D1Baseball.com after a stellar career for the Big Green. Shirley exploded in his sophomore year and was recognized as an All-Ivy League honorable mention at second base. In Ivy League games, his 32 hits tied for most and his .405 average ranked second. He led the Big Green in hits, runs, doubles, total bases, triples, slugging average, stolen bases and multi-hit games. As a junior, he was named to the Spring Academic All-Ivy League Team and had another solid season. During his senior season, he recorded career highs in runs, runs batted in and batting average, with 26, 32 and .314 respectively.
Shirley was also named as one of the 30 baseball student-athlete candidates for the Senior CLASS reward. The reward is based on four key areas: community, classroom, character and competition.
Miles Wright ’18 (Men’s Basketball)
After stellar play in both football and basketball at Tabor Academy in Boston, Massachusetts, Miles Wright ’18 made an immediate impact for the Big Green his freshman year as a guard. He became the first Big Green player since 2004 to win the Ivy League Rookie of the Year after a solid season in which he averaged 7.7 points per game and was sixth in the Ivy League with 1.4 steals per game. He made a big jump his sophomore season, improving his point per game to 11.2 and leading the team in three-pointers made and blocked shots with 37 and 12 respectively. As a junior, he led the Big Green in three-pointers made and steals with 42 and 21, respectively. As a co-captain his senior year, he became the 29th Big Green player to reach the 1,000 points milestone and set a record for career starts with 106. He is also the only player in Big Green history with 1,000 points, 400 rebounds, 100 three-pointers and 100 steals.
Tanguy Nef ’20 (Alpine Men’s Skiing)
Originally from Geneva, Switzerland, Tanguy Nef ’20 has been a prodigy skier for the Big Green. As a freshman, he finished sixth at the NCAA Championships and was named to the All-America Second Team and the All-East First Team. He improved even more as a sophomore; the highlight was him taking All-American First Team honors after finishing first in the NCAA Championships. He became the first Dartmouth slalom champion since Karl Johnson in 2006 and is also the first Dartmouth skier to be awarded All-American honors in both the slalom and giant slalom since 2011.
