BROOKVILLE, N.Y. – LIU men's basketball senior Raiquan Clark was named the Male Athlete of the Year, while junior swimmer Amanda Peren was named the Female Athlete of the Year at Long Island University's 2020 Athletic Awards banquet Monday evening. The event, which was held virtually, can be viewed in its entirety on YouTube or above. Seniors Dan Foley from men's lacrosse and Patricia Griffin from softball earned LIU's Scholar Athlete of the Year honors, while the women's lacrosse team earned the Make a Difference Award.
 
Peren re-wrote the record books at the 2020 Northeast Conference Swimming and Diving championships. She was named the Most Outstanding Swimmer of the Meet after setting a pair of conference and school records in the 200 IM and 200 free. She swam a 2:00.30 in the 200 IM, and snapped a 14-year old conference record in the 200 free, with a time of 1:47.26. The Alexandria, Virginia native capped her weekend with a win in the 100 free in a school record time of 49.71. She also earned two silvers and a bronze medal in relay events.  And she matched her success on the pool with success in the classroom, as she was named the NEC's Scholar Athlete of the Year in the sport of women's swimming.
 
 
Clark had a decorated career over the past four years that was capped with a historic senior season. He went from walk-on to the all-time leading scoring in LIU men's basketball history, and scored 2,000 career points in the process. He is just one of seven men's basketball players in Northeast Conference history to hit the 2,000-point mark, and he ranks first in scoring in a program record book that dates back nearly 100 years. In his final season at LIU, he averaged 19.5 points a game, while playing nearly every single minute of every game on the scheduled. He was recognized for his outstanding play, being named All-NEC, All-ECAC, All District and All-Met.
 
 
LIU also announced award winners from each sport and the winners of the department's other major awards:

Male Athlete of the Year:  Raiquan Clark, Sr., Men's Basketball

Female Athlete of the Year: Amanda Peren, Jr., Women's Swimming

Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Dan Foley, Sr., Men's Lacrosse

Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Patricia Griffin, Sr., Softball

Make a Difference Award: Women's Lacrosse
Presented annually to the team that completes the most community service hours.

Dr. Roy Illowit Award: Kendall Purdy, Sr., Women's Lacrosse
Annually bestowed upon a deserving student-athlete for their achievements in the classroom and on the field, while also representing the spirit of Dr. Ilowit with an outstanding grade-point average and a high level of character on the playing field.

Dolly King Athletic Excellence Award: Matias Pesallaccia, Sr., Men's Soccer
Presented to the student-athlete who exemplifies leadership, sportsmanship and achievement that the late William "Dolly" King personified as a student-athlete, administrator and coach.

Claire Isicson-Merle Athletic Excellence Award: Noemie Lacroix-Moreau, Sr., Women's Swimming
Presented to the student-athlete who exemplifies leadership, sportsmanship and achievement that Claire Isicson-Merle personified as a student and an athlete.

Leonard Ching International Student-Athlete Award: Stephanie Esogenwune, Sr., Women's Track & Field
This award is in honor of Leonard Ching, a Brooklyn Campus administrator in the student activities office from 1967 until he retired in 1984. Through his efforts, the enrollment of international students increased and the student life was enhanced. This award is presented every year to the most outstanding all around international senior student-athlete, male or female.
 
Christine Webb Award: Abel Joseph, Sr., Football
Awarded annually to a deserving student-athlete, who displays the most Shark Spirit.

MEN'S SOCCER
MVP: Kyle Parish
Joe Machnik Ambassador Award: Athanasios Coutroumpas

WOMEN'S SOCCER
MVP: Kayla DeTreux

RUGBY
MVP: Sydney Long
Shark Spirit: Maqueisha Gillett
 
VOLLEYBALL
MVP: Amanda Hubbard
Shark Spirit: Natalia Rivera

FOOTBALL
MVP: Abel Joseph
Shark Spirit: Tim Marinan

FIELD HOCKEY
MVP: Rachel Vellis
Shark Spirit: Helen Flores

MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
MVP: Michael Herbert
Shark Spirit: Brendan Rosario

WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
MVP: Ainhoa Brea
Shark Spirit: Margaret McKeever

EQUESTRIAN
MVP: Grace Titus & Miko McGovern
Shark Spirit: Mackenzie Ashe, Alex Daskam & Jackie Davis

WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Co-MVPs: Taylor Parker & Stephanie Esogenwune

MEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Co-MVPs: Kasique Oliver & Krishna White

WOMEN'S BOWLING
MVP: Tyler Karpinecz
Shark Spirit: Patricia Kelly & Kellie Frain

WOMEN'S SWIMMING
MVP: Amanda Peren
Shark Spirit: Caitlyn Kanemitsu

WATER POLO
MVP: Kate Hinrichs
Shark Spirit: Jeannet Garcia

WRESTLING
MVP: Dan McClure
Shark Spirit: Dan McClure

FENCING
MVP: Faith Ferraro
Shark Spirit: Nikkita Louis

WOMEN'S ICE HOCKEY
MVP: Matilda af Bjur
Shark Spirit: Erin Hinch

MEN'S BASKETBALL
MVP: Raiquan Clark
Shark Spirit: Eral Penn

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
MVP: Brandy Thomas
Shark Spirit: Ryan Weise

WOMEN'S LACROSSE
Impact Award: Paige Sherlock
Shark Spirit: Elise Person

WOMEN'S TENNIS
MVP: Sofiya Kuzina
Shark Spirit: Veronika Koudelkova

MEN'S GOLF
Lonnie Barton Award: Kyle Underwood

WOMEN'S GOLF
MVP: Julia Towne
Shark Spirit: Aida Gonzalez

MEN'S LACROSSE
Blue & Gold Award: Dan Foley
Lunch Pail Award: Mike Kadnar

WOMEN'S OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Shark Spirit: Angeli Andre

MEN'S OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Shark Spirit: Jahsira J. Dunbar

SOFTBALL
SP Award: Kristen Blanchard
Academic Excellence Award: Patricia Griffin

BASEBALL
Frank Giannone Leadership Award: Andy Camilo
MVP: Anthony Warneke

ESPORTS
MVP:  Darrion Ramjattan (Rocket League) & Peter Plocharczyk (League of Legends)
Shark Spirit: Maqueisha Gillet (Fortnite) & Brenden Rosario (Smash)

DANCE (POST)
MVP: Marina Kilkenny
Shark Spirit: Jenna Kilkenny

DANCE (BROOKLYN)
MVP: Stefanie Liautaud
Shark Spirit: Veronica Samuel

BAND
Shark Spirit: Diana Fuller & Anthony Kolanik

CHEER
MVP: Lila Nolan
Shark Spirit: Jahdai Hart-Hernandez