FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Returning to an in-person format for the first time in three years, the Nova Southeastern athletic department hosted the 4th Annual Sharky’s Awards Show this past Sunday on campus inside the Rose & Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center.
The event commemorated the 2021-22 season and recognized NSU’s student-athletes for their notable academic and athletic successes.
The “ESPY’s” style event featured a Blue Carpet pre-show and was emceed by senior men’s basketball players Eddie Puisis and Nick Smith. To view all photo albums of the event, CLICK HERE.
Blue Carpet Pre-Show
4th Annual Sharky’s Awards Show
The night kicked off with the announcement of the Female and Male Rookie of the Year awards, which were handed out to Elizabeth Price (Volleyball) and Luca Alessandrini (Men’s Swimming).
The Female and Male Rising Star awards, which are given to a sophomore or junior student-athlete who has made significant strides early in his or her NSU career, were then presented to Celina Marquez (Women’s Swimming) and Tobias Pellio (Men’s Soccer).
Marquez also collected the Female National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) Athlete of the Year Award, while Daniel Irrisari (Baseball) was named the NSCA Athlete of the Year on the men’s side.
Associate Athletic Director for Student-Athlete Support Services and Title IX Coordinator, Rachel Fineberg presented Female and Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors to both Allison Kopas (Women’s Swimming) and Evan Weber (Men’s Swimming).
Continuing the academic theme, the athletics department then announced the 43 new inductees into the Chi Alpha Sigma Honor Society. Chi Alpha Sigma is the first and only non-profit organization that was established to honor collegiate student-athletes who have received a varsity letter in their sport, have achieved junior academic standing or higher after their fifth full-time semester, and own a 3.4 or higher cumulative grade-point average.
The Ultimate Shark awards followed, as each team recognized a student-athlete who either excelled on the playing field, was considered the team MVP, or was an overall exemplary team leader throughout the year. Below is a complete list of both the Female and Male Ultimate Sharks.
Sharkettes – Savannah Hyatt
Women’s Basketball – McKenah Peters
Women’s Cross Country/Track – Ivanova Yanes
Women’s Golf – Sofia Garcia Austt
Women’s Soccer – Lily Truong
Softball – Tia Williams
Women’s Swimming – Cassandra Wright
Tennis – Karolina Snita
Volleyball – Madison Cook
Baseball – Daniel Irisarri
Men’s Basketball – Nick Smith
Men’s Cross Country/Track – Joseph Salerno
Men’s Golf – Javier Calles
Men’s Soccer – Matty Cornish
Men’s Swimming – Luca Alessandrini
After announcing each Ultimate Shark, both the Female and Male Golden Shark awards were presented. From the pool of Ultimate Sharks, one female and one male student-athlete was named the Golden Shark. The Golden Shark award is given to the female and male student-athlete that has displayed a dominant presence within competition and is known as one of NSU’s premiere athletes. Nominees are submitted by respective coaches and voted on by the athletics administration team. On the women’s side, Cassandra Wright (Women’s Swimming) earned the award, while Nick Smith (Men’s Basketball) took home the honor as the Male Golden Shark.
The night concluded with a Team of the Year tribute, presented by Director of Athletics Michael Mominey, where there was an overarching recognition of all of NSU Athletics’ success throughout 2021-22 – specifically its four National Championships, two Regional Championships and four Sunshine State Conference Championships.
