Providence College Athletics
Providence College Honors Top Athletes At Annual Awards Gala
4/28/2009 12:00:00 AM | General
April 28, 2009
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Providence College honored its top athletes at the 48th annual All-Sports Gala on Monday, April 27, 2009. The social hour and awards ceremony were held at the Smith Center for Performing Arts on the campus of Providence College in Providence, R.I.
Senior All-American and All-BIG EAST performer Danette Doetzel (Macklin, Saskatchewan) was named the College's Female Athlete of the Year for Individual Sports for the second-consecutive year. Doetzel competes on the Friars' cross country, indoor and outdoor track teams. Sophomore cross country and track athlete David McCarthy (Waterford, Ireland) earned Male Athlete of the Year for Individual Sports after earning All-America honors in cross country and indoor track. Junior field hockey player Nellie Poulin (Oakland, Maine) earned Female Athlete of the Year accolades for Team Sports. She became the ninth Friar in program history to earn All-America honors and she has been a First-Team All-BIG EAST selection each of the last two seasons. Senior men's basketball player Weyinmi Efejuku (Fresh Meadows, N.Y.) was named the school's Male Athlete of the Year for Team Sports. Efejuku led the Friars in scoring in 2009 and earned BIG EAST Honorable Mention honors.
Along with the Athlete of the Year Awards, five other major awards were presented at the banquet. Senior Sara Sheehan (West Chester, Pa.), a member of the volleyball team, was the winner of the Paul Connolly Award as the female athlete who has distinguished herself among her peers through sportsmanship, courage and honor. Senior men's basketball player Geoff McDermott (New Rochelle, N.Y.) and senior men's ice hockey player Kyle Laughlin (Gambrills, Md.) were named co-recipients of the Mal Brown Award. The Mal Brown Award is given annually to the male athlete whose career of intercollegiate competition portrayed sportsmanship, courage and honor.
The Sine Qua Non Awards, given annually to the male and female athletes who have distinguished themselves among their peers without receiving proper recognition, were presented to senior men's basketball player Jonathan Kale (Mattapan, Mass.) and senior women's field hockey player Meghan Holden (Worcester, Mass.). Senior Ali Kornfeld (Kingston, Pa.), a member of the Friar field hockey team, was the recipient of the Jane Thompson Award, which is presented to the male or female senior student-athlete, who personifies all that is good about being a student-athlete at Providence College and exhibits selflessness, dedication, loyalty, courage and perseverance.
Doetzel won Female Athlete of the Year honors for Individual Sports for the second-straight season. In 2008-09, Doetzel captured All-America honors in cross country and indoor track in the 5,000 meters. She also claimed the NCAA Northeast Regional Cross Country title and the BIG EAST Indoor Track 3,000 meter individual title for the second-straight time in her career at Providence. Doetzel also competed in the 5,000 meter event at the BIG EAST Indoor Championship and registered a second-place finish. In the early stages of the 2009 outdoor track season, Doetzel qualified for the NCAA Regional Championship in the 5,000 meters with a personal-best time of 15:46.76.
McCarthy earned Male Athlete of the Year honors for Individual Sports for the first time in his career in just his second year with the program. He started off the year receiving All-America honors in cross country with a 19th-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Prior to competing at the NCAA Championships, he posted a third-place finish at the BIG EAST Championship and second-place finish at the NCAA Northeast Regionals. During the indoor track season, McCarthy posted a sub-four minute mile at the BU Valentine Invitational on February 14. His time of 3:57.75 marks the third-best time in the mile in Friar history. His impressive season continued at the BIG EAST Championships as he captured the individual title in the 3,000 meters. He also ran the anchor leg on the Distance Medley Relay team that went on to win the BIG EAST crown. He also earned All-America accolades in the mile at the NCAA Championships with a fourth-place finish. McCarthy also was named USTFCCCA Northeast Region Male Athlete of the Year.
Poulin led the Providence field hockey team to another impressive season. A Friar field hockey player has earned Female Athlete of the Year honors each of the last three years. Poulin led Providence in scoring with a career-high 33 points on 16 goals and one assist. Her 16 goals mark the most scored by a Friar since Karen Krawchuk netted 24 goals in 1989. Additionally, five of her 16 goals came during BIG EAST regular-season play - leading Providence to its third-straight BIG EAST Tournament berth. Poulin became the ninth Friar in program history to earn All-America honors as a member of the Longstreth/NFHCA Division I All-America Third Team. She also is the third player to earn All-America honors since 2006. With one year of eligibility remaining, Poulin currently ranks ninth all-time in scoring at PC with 80 points and sits in a three-way tie for seventh place all-time in career goals (35).
Efejuku finished his career with 1,500 points, the 12th most in the history of PC basketball. He had his best season as a senior, registering a team-high 15.7 points per game. In BIG EAST action, he averaged 16.4 ppg in 18 contests. He shot an impressive 41.4 percent (24-58) from behind the three-point line in league play. He truly excelled in the latter part of the year, averaging over 20 points per contest over the team's last 10 games to help lead the Friars into the postseason. Efejuku scored a career-best 31 points on March 21 against Notre Dame. On March 10, he earned USBWA All-District I honors and on March 8, he was named All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention. Efejuku participated in the prestigious annual Portsmouth Invitational Tournament on April 8-11 in Portsmouth, Va.
Sheehan ranked first on the 2008 Friar volleyball squad this season with 993 assists and 43 service aces. Sheehan finishes her career at PC third on the all-time assists list (3,357) amongst setters and second on the all-time service aces list (169). Sheehan played in 121 of the team's 124 games and ranks third all-time at PC with 451 career games played. She also served as a team captain in 2009.
McDermott led the Friars in rebounding in 2008-09, averaging 8.5 rebounds per game (279 total). He also averaged 8.2 points per game in 2009. McDermott recorded 10 or more rebounds 46 times in his career, including 11 times during his senior season. He tied his career high with 17 boards versus Marquette on January 17. McDermott finished his career as one of the most well-rounded players in Friar basketball history. All-time at Providence, McDermott ranks 29th in points (1,122), fourth in rebounds (1,055), eighth in assists (478), fifth in steals (205), 10th in blocked shots (108), seventh in games played (122) and third in minutes (4,015). He is just the sixth player to register more than 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds at Providence and he is the only one of those six players to record more than 450 assists in a career. McDermott started every game of his career at Providence (122 games) and established the team's record for consecutive starts.
Laughlin served as co-captain of the men's hockey team during his last two seasons. Despite battling injuries, Laughlin played in 19 games this past season and recorded one goal and one assist. Laughlin has been named to the Hockey East All-Academic Team for three consecutive seasons and earned the Team's Academic Award for three straight seasons. He recorded a career-high 17 points during the 2007-08 season and tallied a career-best nine goals during his freshman season in 2005-06.
Kale had his best season in a Friar uniform as a senior, averaging 10.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in 2008-09. Kale, who started all 33 games in 2008-09, recorded double-figure scoring totals in nine of the 12 non-conference games, 11 of the 18 BIG EAST games and had 11 points in the First Round NIT game on March 18 versus Miami. Kale was a key part of the win over No. 1 Pittsburgh on March 24, posting 13 points. He finished his career at Providence ranked eighth all-time in field goal percentage (270-504, .536) and 15th in offensive rebounds (201).
Holden started all 21 games for the field hockey team this season and registered nine points on two goals and five assists. She scored the game-winning goal in the Friars', 3-2, overtime victory against 17th-ranked Massachusetts in the squad's season finale. During a six-game stretch this season, Holden was asked to fill in at the central midfield position while the Friars' All-BIG EAST starting center-mid sat out with an injury. During that stretch, Holden helped guide the Friars to a 4-2 record, including a 2-1 mark versus nationally-ranked opponents. During her career, she was a steady force in the midfield for Providence. In 72 career games, she recorded 46 points on 15 goals and 16 assists. Her 46 career points ranks 25th all-time in program history, while her 16 assists ranks 16th all-time.
Kornfeld becomes the fourth field hockey player to earn the Jane Thompson Award since it was added to the All-Sports Gala in 2005. Kornfeld has played in 51 career games for Providence and has scored eight points on three goals and two assists. Her commitment and success continues beyond the playing field, not only in the classroom, but also in the community. Kornfeld is a two-time member of the NFHCA Division I All-Academic Squad and BIG EAST Academic All-Star honoree, in addition to serving as the Vice President of the Student-Athlete Advisory Council.
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