Gannon University Athletics

Check back at this page each day for a full recap of the day's festivities. Click on the sport name to jump to that section of the page.

With the academic year wrapped up and graduation approaching, the 12th Annual Golden Knight Awards will celebrate the unique year of 2020-21 across the Gannon social media channels and right here at gannonsports.com next week.
 
Starting Monday and running through Friday, Gannon will commemorate four to five teams per day, with a season recap from each coach, as well as announcing the team MVP and honoring the four-year seniors and Chi Alpha Sigma inductees.
 
The team celebrations will be spread throughout the day on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, and everything will be archived right here at the 2021 Golden Knight Awards landing page each evening.
 
Join us in honoring all 24 Gannon Athletics teams, who overcame additional COVID-19 protocols, ever-changing schedules and modified methods of education and competition to continue their pursuit of excellence in 2020-21.
 
See below for a full schedule for the week:
 
MONDAY, MAY 10
Cross Country
Football
Volleyball
 
TUESDAY, MAY 11
Women’s Soccer
Men’s Soccer
Swimming and Diving
Men’s Water Polo
 
WEDNESDAY, MAY 12
Men’s Basketball
Women’s Wrestling
Women’s Basketball
Men’s Wrestling
 
THURSDAY, MAY 13
Competitive Cheer and Dance
Women’s Water Polo
Lacrosse
Acrobatics and Tumbling
 
FRIDAY, MAY 14
Baseball
Women’s Golf
Softball
Men’s Golf
Senior Student-Athletes of the Year
Thank You


 CROSS COUNTRY 

Hear from head coach John Carrig about the spring season that started in the snow and ended with the highest PSAC finishes ever for both the women and men:



The women's MVP is senior Alena Wisniewski!
Alena finished in the top 12 of every race this year, including 3rd at the Gannon Invite and 12th at PSACs for an all-conference performance.


The men's MVP is sophomore Caleb Mandel!
Caleb was the top runner for the Golden Knights in all three races, winning the Gannon Invite and taking 25th at PSACs. He also won the PSAC Champion Scholar award, giving Gannon the award for the fourth straight year.


Congrats to the four new inductees into Chi Alpha Sigma. They join 15 others from women's cross country who have earned induction over the past three years. Men's XC had no new inductees, but have put five into the honor society over the past three years.


Six women and two men completed their fourth year with the program to earn the four-year commitment award




 FOOTBALL 

Hear from coach Erik Raeburn about a spring season that saw Gannon improve over its four games, culminating in a thrilling overtime victory over Mercyhurst:



The team MVP was redshirt sophomore Nicholas White! 
Nick led the team with 5.5 sacks, the most for a Golden Knight since 2017 (and in less than half the games), as well as 8.5 tackles for loss.


Welcome the newest football inductees into the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society. They join 16 others who have been inducted into the ranks over the past three years.


And congratulations to our four-year award winners, as 15 Golden Knights hit four (or more!) years in the program in 2020-21.



 Volleyball 

Hear from head coach Matt Darling about a spring season that saw the programs highest ever ranking in the AVCA Top 25 Poll.



The team MVP is junior Lauren Sampson!
Lauren led the Knights with a team-high 215 kills and 36 service aces. She also tallied five double-doubles, including four over the last five matches of the season.



Welcome the newest volleyball inductees into the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society. They join nine others who have been inducted into the ranks over the past two years.



And congratulations to our four-year award winners, as five Golden Knights hit four years in the program in 2020-21. The group helped Gannon to a 111-21 record over that span.




 WOMEN'S SOCCER 

Hear from head coach Colin Petersen about a spring season that saw the Golden Knights go 3-1-0 overall, plus play in five exhibition games:



The team MVP is senior Megan McCartney! 
Megan started all four games for the Golden Knights this spring, registering one goal on 10 shots. That score was a strike early on in a 3-2 victory over Slippery Rock.


Congratulations to the newest inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma honor society. These seven Golden Knights join another nine from women's soccer who were inducted in the past two years.


And thank you to the seniors who completed their fourth year in the program (or fifth for a few).



 MEN'S SOCCER 

Hear from coach Billy Colton about a spring season that saw the Golden Knights break in a young lineup over six games and three exhibitions:



The team MVP is sophomore Sergio Del Castillo! 
Sergio led the Knights with 8 goals and 17 points on the season, including a hat trick at Point Park and a pair of scores against Roberts Wesleyan.


Congrats also to the three new inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma honor society! Those three join 17 other inductees over the previous three seasons for men's soccer.


And a huge thank you to the student-athletes who completed their fourth year with the program in 2020-21!



 SWIMMING AND DIVING 

Hear from coach Jacqueline Michalski about a season that stretched across the entire year and saw program records, an NCAA qualifier and a number of top times:



The women's MVP is senior Silvija Taraska! 
Silvija set two new program records, giving her four for her, won a pair of PSAC titles and 7 all-conference finishes, and qualified for NCAAs in the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle.


The men's MVP is sophomore Andrew Beyer!
Andrew won four individual races this year, and helped the Golden Knights to a 3rd-place finish at PSACs with an all-conference finish in the 200 backstroke, and two new Gannon top 10 times!


Congratulations to the four new inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma honor society! They join 11 others from women's swimming and diving who have earned induction the past three years.


Also, two new inductees to Chi Alpha Sigma for the men. Congrats to the duo, who join seven others inducted in the previous three years.


And congrats to the four-year seniors who just wrapped up eight semesters at Gannon!




 MEN'S WATER POLO 

Hear from coach Shane Unger on a season that saw a shift to the winter months and reaching the MAWPC-West title game for the second consecutive year:



The team MVP is sophomore Vladimir Mickic!
Vladimir led the Knights with 20 goals on the season, adding two assists and 18 drawn exclusions. He went for six goals in the MAWPC-West semifinal against Mount St. Mary's.


Congratulations to the two new inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma honor society! They join four other inductees from the past three years.


And a big thank you to the four-year award winners for the Golden Knights!



 MEN'S BASKETBALL 

Hear from coach Kelvin Jefferson about a 2020-21 season that saw the Golden Knights jump out to an 8-0 start and achieve their first national ranking since 2013:



The team MVP is junior Braden Olsen!
Braden hit the ground running in his first year in Erie, leading the team in assists and ranking ninth in the country with 5.9 assists per game. He also shot 48.9 percent from the field and averaged 13.4 points per game.


Congrats also to Braden, who was inducted into the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society. He joins two others who have been inducted for the Golden Knights the past three seasons.


And thank you to our four-year award winners, who just completed their eighth semester with the Golden Knights!



 WOMEN'S WRESTLING 

Hear from coach Christen Dierken about a 2020-21 season that saw the Golden Knights finish 10th in the country with three All-Americans:



The team MVP is junior Caleeann Blarr!
Caleeann posted a team-high 10 wins in the shortened season, going 10-5 with 2 pins and 5 tech falls, and earned All-America honors with an 8th-place finish at nationals!


Congratulations to the pair of Golden Knights who earned induction into the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society! That bumps the number of all-time inductees to three in the short history of the program.



 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL 

Hear from coach Cleve Wright about a season that saw the Golden Knights go 13-1 against an all-nonconference schedule and spend most of the season in the national rankings:



The team MVP is redshirt sophomore Sam Pirosko!
Sam led the team in scoring at 15.9 points per game, shooting 60 percent from the floor. She scored 20+ in five of her final nine games, including back-to-back double-doubles to end the season against Mercyhurst.


Congratulations to the seven new inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma honor society! That doubles the number of inductees, as the Golden Knights had seven inducted over the previous three years.


And a big thank you to Sydney Mitchell, who earned the four-year award!



 MEN'S WRESTLING 

Hear from coach Don Henry about a season that saw the Golden Knights win their first region title, send 8 to nationals for the second straight year, and crown 3 All-Americans:



The team MVP is redshirt sophomore Alex Farenchak!
Alex went 9-2 on the shortened season, finishing 2nd in the region and going on to All-America with a runner-up finish at NCAAs.


Congratulations to the pair of wrestlers who earned induction into the Chi Alpha Sigma honor society! They join eight others who joined the ranks over the past three years.


And a big thank you to the four-year award winners!



 WOMEN'S WATER POLO 

Hear from coach Shane Unger about a condensed season that saw the Golden Knights improve throughout and reach the WWPA semifinals:



The team MVP is junior Nicole Wiemken!
Nicole led the team with 55 goals in just 18 games, adding 20 assists, 21 drawn exclusions and 12 steals. She put up a season-high 10 goals against VMI, and had a run of 19 over five games through the final conference weekend and WWPA tournament.


Congratulations to the seven new inductees into the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society! They join five other Golden Knights who were inducted in the previous two years.


And a big thank you to the trio who just completed their fourth year with the program!



 CHEER AND DANCE 

Hear from coach Kerri Makay on a 2021 season that saw the Knights finish with all 4 teams either setting or matching their best finish at nationals:



The cheer MVP is junior Karsyn Plis!
Karsyn helped the coed cheer team to a third-place finish at the NCA & NDA Collegiate Cheer and Dance Championships, their highest finish in the five-year history of the program!


The dance MVP is sophomore Isabella Chatkin!
Isabella helped the Golden Knights to a program-best 6th-place finish in team performance in the second trip to nationals, as well as a 5th-place finish in their first time in the hip hop division!


Congratulations to the 12 newly inducted members of the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society! They join 13 other Golden Knights who have been inducted over the past three years.


And a huge thank you to the seven student-athletes who completed their fourth year in the program!



 LACROSSE 

Hear from coach Jenny Pawlowski about a 2021 season that saw the Golden Knights get some experience from some young players and improve throughout the spring:



The team MVP is junior Emma Ivory!
Emma was an anchor on defense, grabbing 17 ground balls, 8 caused turnovers and 12 draw controls to go with a pair of goals!


Congratulations to the four new inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society! They join eight other Golden Knights inducted in the past three seasons.


And a big thank you to the five student-athletes who just wrapped up their fourth season with the program!



 ACROBATICS AND TUMBLING 

Hear from coach Jacquie Eshleman about a season that saw the Golden Knights get back on the mat and complete the first undefeated season in program history:



The team MVP is fifth-year senior Nikki Pizzi!
Nikki earned All-America honors from the NCATA, and 10 different heats she took part in averaged at least 9.23 with her in the lineup, including a 9.91 average in comp toss and 9.83 in open pyramid!


Congratulations to the seven inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society! They join the 13 other Golden Knights who have been inducted in the past three seasons.


And a big round of applause to the five seniors who just completed their fourth year with the program!



 BASEBALL 

Hear from coach Greg Coleman about a season that saw the Golden Knights go 13-2 at home and earn a spot in the postseason for the third consecutive season:



The team MVP is junior Deven Judy!
Deven made 10 starts on the year, putting together a 3.27 ERA with 66 strikeouts to move into 2nd place in the Gannon record book in career strikeouts.


Congratulations to the four new inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma national honors society! They join 11 others from the team who have been inducted in the previous three years.


And a big thank you to the six student-athletes who just completed their fourth year with the Golden Knights!



 WOMEN'S GOLF 

Hear from coach Scott Stano about a season that saw the Golden Knights successfully defend their PSAC championship and record their highest finish ever and an NCAA regional:



The team MVP is senior Madison Gardner!
Madison played in all 21 rounds for the Golden Knights this year, recording two top-five finishes. She saved her best for last, with the best round of her career at the NCAA East Super Regional.


Congratulations to the three new inductees to the Chi Alpha Sigma national honors society! They join an additional nine Golden Knights who have earned induction over the past three years.


And congrats to Madison Gardner, who earns the four-year award!



 SOFTBALL 

Hear from coach Michelle Wiley about a season that saw the Knights get up to speed quickly and reach the final rounds of the PSAC tournament for the third straight time.



The team MVP is senior Kristina DeMatteis!
Kristina batted .314 with 10 doubles and 28 RBIs, and led the team with 34 runs, 21 walks and 10 stolen bases. She played in all 43 games, catching nearly all of them.


Congratulations to Rebecca Tatone for her induction into the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society! She joins 19 others from softball who have been inducted over the past three years.


And a huge thank you to the six Golden Knights who earned their four-year award this year!



 MEN'S GOLF 

Hear from coach Dustin Coleman about a season that has seen the Knights finish top 5 in every tournament and win their first NCAA regional (and that's just so far):



The team MVP is ... to be determined! We'll announce the winner after next week's NCAA Championships.


Congratulations to Abe Holmes for his induction into the Chi Alpha Sigma national honor society! He joins five others who have earned induction over the past two years.


And a big thank you to the five seniors who are just about wrapped up on four years with the Golden Knights!



 SENIOR STUDENT-ATHLETES OF THE YEAR 

Our Female Senior Student-Athlete of the Year is Nikki Pizzi of Acrobatics and Tumbling! Nikki became the program's 3rd All-American in 2021. Ten of 13 heats she took part in averaged 9.29+ with her on the mat, and she was part of the 2018 inversion pyramid national title.


Our Male Senior Student-Athlete of the Year is Jimmy Keefe of Football! Jimmy wrapped up his Gannon career appearing in 25 games, throwing for 3,787 yards and 29 touchdowns. Those marks put him in the top five in Gannon history in yards and TDs.



 THANK YOU