Providence College Athletics


Providence Holds 38th Annual Awards Banquet

Top Friar athletes honored at Peterson Recreation Center.

April 29, 1999

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -Providence College honored its top athletes at the 38th annual Athletic Awards Banquet at the College's Peterson Recreation Center on Thursday, April 29.

Three-time cross country and track All-American Sarah Dupre (Sr., Kingston, Ontario) and two-time cross country All-American Ben Noad (Sr., Bristol, England) were honored as the College's Female and Male Athletes of the Year for Individual Sports. Sara DeCosta (So., Warwick, R.I.), who earned Second Team All-America accolades in women's ice hockey, was selected as the school's Female Athlete of the Year for Team Sports. Jamel Thomas (Sr., Brooklyn, N.Y.), a First-Team All-BIG EAST selection from the men's basketball team, and Mike Omicioli (Sr., W. Warwick, R.I.), a Second-Team HOCKEY EAST and All-New England team member, were named co-recipients of the Male Athlete of the Year for Team Sports.

Along with Athlete of the Year Awards, four other major awards were presented at the banquet. Female swimmer Jane Thompson (Sr., Halifax, Nova Scotia) received the Paul Connolly Award as the female athlete who has distinguished herself among her peers through sportsmanship, courage and honor. Richard Dichard (Sr., Nashua, N.H.), a four-year member of the golf team, was honored as the Mal Brown Award winner given annually to the male athlete whose career of intercollegiate competition portrayed sportsmanship, courage and honor. The Sine Quo Non Awards, given annually to the male and female athletes who have distinguished themselves among their peers without receiving proper recognition, were presented to All-BIG EAST swimmer Jed Michnowicz (Sr., San Jose, Calif.) and women's basketball player Kerri Sullivan (Sr., Walpole, Mass.).

In addition, an Outstanding Achievement Award was presented to cross country and track star Gladys Ganiel (Sr., Harrington, Maine).

Dupre placed fourth in the 5,000 meters and earned her third All-America accolade at the NCAA Indoor Track Championship in March. Also this year on the track, she won the 3,000 meter title at the BIG EAST Indoor Track Championship. In cross country, she was the BIG EAST and New England individual champion and was the Friars' first finisher in six of the team's seven races. She placed 37th at the NCAA Cross Country Championship and helped the squad finish 14th. In March, Dupre represented Canada at the World Cross Country Championship in Belfast, Ireland.

Noad was 12th overall and PC's first finisher at the 1998 NCAA Cross Country Championship. With his 12th-place finish, he earned his second All-America honor. Noad was the Friars' top cross country runner this year. Noad won four of the six cross country races he ran in 1998, including the New England and BIG EAST championships. His win at the BIG EAST Cross Country Championship helped the team capture its league leading 13th BIG EAST title.

DeCosta, who helped the U.S. Women's Olympic Hockey Team capture the gold medal in 1998, returned to PC this year and earned Second-Team All-America honors, First-Team ECAC All-League accolades and First-Team All-New England honors. She started 28 games for the Friars and posted a 14-11-3 mark. DeCosta finished the season fifth in the nation with a .923 save percentage and eighth in the nation with a 2.32 goals against average.

Thomas, closed out his brilliant career by leading the BIG EAST in scoring (22.0) and taking First Team All-BIG EAST honors. The Brooklyn, New York native led PC to a 16-14 overall record (9-9 in the BIG EAST) and a postseason trip to the NIT. A four-time BIG EAST Player of the Week, Thomas carried the Friars all season, leading the team in scoring and rebounding (7.2) for the second consecutive year. He finished his Providence College career third on the all-time scoring list with 1,971 points. One of six finalists for the Basketball Hall of Fame's prestigious Chip Hilton Award, Thomas was named Team MVP for the second consecutive year. He is one of just three players in PC basketball history to score over 1,800 points and pull down 700 rebounds in his career.

Omicioli led the PC men's hockey team to a 20-17-1 mark and an appearance in HOCKEY EAST Semifinals. He finished tied for the team lead in goals (19) and third in scoring 50 points. He also finished tied for the team lead in plus/minus rating at 16. In recognition of his efforts, he became only the fourth Friar ever to earn the prestigious Walter Brown Award given to New England's outstanding American-born college hockey player. Omicioli also was named a Second-Team HOCKEY EAST All-Star and Second-Team All-New England.

Thompson has had a stellar career for the PC swim team while battling cystic fibrosis. In addition to the demands of being a student-athlete, Thompson must take an average of 40 vitamins and supplements a day and use an aerosol mask twice a day. She served as one of the Friar captains this season and helped lead the team to a 6-5 mark. Thompson competed in the 100 and 200-yard backstroke and the 100-yard butterfly.

Dichard has been a valuable member and solid contributor to the PC golf team for the past four seasons, serving as co-captain the past two years. A model of excellence in leadership and dedication to his team and the game of golf, Dichard was the winner of the 1998 New England Intercollegiate Golf Association's Guy Tedesco Award as the New England Player of the Year last October. He helped lead the Friars to a third place finish in New England, the team's best finish in recent years. A three-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star, Dichard exemplifies the true values of teamwork and sportsmanship. He closes out his collegiate career at the New England Championships on April 29 and 30 at the Sterling Country Club in Sterling, Mass.

Michnowicz, who served as a team captain for the Friars, will graduate as one of the all-time greatest swimmers ever at Providence. His 1,029.75 points in dual meets stands as one of his most impressive marks. In four seasons with the black and white, he established 27 swimming records. He is the first student-athlete ever at PC to earn team MVP honors four consecutive years. Michnowicz became the first Friar swimmer in 15 years to earn All-BIG EAST honors with his second-place finish in the 500 freestyle (4:40.41). Michnowicz, a computer science major with a 3.29 cumulative GPA, has also achieved in the classroom, earning 1998-99 GTE Academic All-District 1 Fall/Winter At-Large honors.

Sullivan, a co-captain of the 1998-99 Friars' women's basketball team, was called by her coach, Jim Jabir.... "the consumate team player, always asking what she can do to help her teammates on and off the court." Sullivan battled injuries, but still played in 83 games in her career, starting 34 of them. She averaged 4.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game this season while being PC's top rebounder six times during the year. She pulled down a career high 15 rebounds at West Virginia on February 6th.

Ganiel, whose academic, athletic and community service accomplishments may never be matched at Providence College, has achieved at the highest level. A five-time GTE Academic All-American, Ganiel has posted a 3.986 cumulative GPA as a political science major in her four years at Providence. In her freshman year (1995-96), she helped the PC women's cross country team capture the NCAA Championship. She also has been a member of three BIG EAST Cross Country championship teams and three New England Cross Country championship teams. This year, she was named a finalist for a Rhodes Scholarship and earned the BIG EAST/Target Female Scholar Athlete Award as the top graduating female athlete in the Conference. Her most recent honor was being selected as a recipient of the prestigious NCAA Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship. In addition to the countless hours Ganiel spends on the track and in the classroom, she still finds time to serve as a writer for the student newspaper and volunteer with various church organizations.

More than 300 athletes from PC's 22 varsity sports attended the dinner. Watches were presented to the graduating senior athletes.