CUA honors careers of its senior student-athletes

WASHINGTON – On Thursday, May 10 CUA held its annual Senior Student-Athlete Banquet inside the Pryzbyla Center.  Over 300 people gathered to look back on the careers of CUA’s senior student-athletes.  Each head coach was in attendance, along with numerous university administrators and guests, and at the end of the night several awards were presented, including the Jone Dowd Role Model Award, the Senior Athlete Award, the Harris Cup and the Donley Cup.

To see a photo gallery from the night, click here.

The Jone Dowd Student-Athlete Role Model Award is given annually to a male and female student-athlete who exudes graciousness in victory, humility in defeat and rallies their peers to consistently compete at a high level in athletics and beyond.

The female winner of this year’s Jone Dowd Student-Athlete Role Model Award is Caitlin Brett.  Caitlin is a standout on the women’s soccer team, serving as the lone captain during the 2011 season.  Caitlin is a two-time First Team All-Landmark Conference selection and in 2011, she also earned All-Region honors. 

Off the pitch, Caitlin is a multi-year member of the Dean’s List and Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll, in addition to being a member of Mu Theta Chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha.  She is highly involved in a number of service initiatives, including SAAC, Race Against the Odds 5K, Soccer on the Hill youth clinic, Charity Dodge ball Fundraiser, Special Olympics and Homeless Food Runs.  Brett also traveled overseas last year for a study abroad program in Ireland.  While there, she remained in close contact with her coaches and teammates, helping to propel them to yet another successful season in 2011.

The male winner of this year’s Jone Dowd Student-Athlete Role Model Award is Darrell Carroll, of the men’s basketball team. Carroll enjoyed a career year for CUA in 2011-12, establishing career highs in minutes, points, rebounds and field goal percentage.  A captain, Darrell is a multi-year member of the Dean’s List and Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll and he will graduate from CUA with a 3.9 grade point average with a double major in international economics and finance.

Carroll is also a member of Sigma Delta Pi, Pi Gamma Mu, Phi Sigma Tau and Phi Betta Kappa.  He is one of only ten finalists in the entire country for the Arthur Ashe Jr. Award, and he is the only Division III student-athlete among the finalists.  Carroll has been involved with Wreaths Across America, JPMorgan Outreach to inner city youth, and kiva.org, which raises money for farmers globally, during his time at CUA.

The Outstanding Senior Athlete Award is presented to the male and female athletes who have made significant contributions to their respective teams.

The female winner of this year’s Senior Athlete of the Year is Tracey Scanlon, a two-sport star in field hockey and softball.  Tracey is a three-time First Team All-Landmark Conference selection in field hockey, and in 2011, she became the first First Team All-American in field hockey in CUA history.  She is also a two-time All-Region honoree and was selected to the 2011 NFHCA Senior All-Star Game.

On the softball field, Tracey has made a pair of All-League Teams, and she finished her career with 102 hits, 79 runs scored, 41 RBIs, 16 stolen bases and a 94.1 fielding percentage.  In the classroom, Tracey has been equally as impressive, earning Dean’s List, Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll and NFHCA National Academic Squad honors in multiple years.  She was voted the winner of the Distinguished Marketing Award, which is awarded to the most outstanding marketing student at CUA, and is a member of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society.

The male winner of this year’s Senior Athlete of the Year is Tim Mierzwa.  A three-time All-Conference selection in baseball, including First Team laurels in 2012, Mierzwa wrapped up his career with a batting average of .329, to go along with 156 hits and 127 runs scored.  Mierzwa hit .338 this past season and led the Cardinals with 48 hits, while posting a fielding percentage of .957.

In the classroom, Mierzwa has made multiple appearances on the Dean’s List and Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll, and he was the recipient of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab Scholarship, in addition to the Edward M Nagel Scholarship.  A biomedical engineering major, Mierzwa helped to develop a number of engineering projects during his time at CUA, including an automated pill dispenser designed to reduce overdoses in senior citizens.

The Donley Cup is presented annually to a female student-athlete regarded as an outstanding leader, athlete and scholar who made a significant contribution to the campus and community.

The winner of this year’s Donley Cup is Mary Swarthout.  Swarthout had an exceptional career for the CUA women’s lacrosse and field hockey teams, helping those two programs win a total of five conference championships.  Swarthout is a three-time All-American in women’s lacrosse, including First Team honors in 2011, and she captured the 2010, 2011 and 2012 Landmark Conference Player of the Year awards.  Swarthout is a four-time First Team All-Conference selection and three-time First Team All-Region honoree.

In field hockey, Swarthout was a two-time First Team All-Conference pick, a two-time All-Region selection and a 2011 Third Team All-American.  She finished her career with 36 goals, 25 assists, 97 points and 13 game-winning goals.

In the classroom, Swarthout has carried a 3.7 GPA, while earning multiple selections to the Dean’s List, Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll, NFHCA National Academic Squad and IWLCA Honor Roll.  She is a member of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society, and was the recipient of the 2012 Marion Award (second most outstanding senior female student at CUA) and the 2011 Mary J. Flynn O’Dwyer Award (most outstanding female student at CUA, junior class).  In addition, she served as the Vice President of SAAC and was involved in a number of service efforts, including MLK, Jr. Day of Service, A Wider Circle, U.S. Armed Forces Retirement Home, Homeless Food Runs, Special Olympics and Friends of Jaclyn.

The Harris Cup is presented annually to a male student-athlete regarded as an outstanding leader, athlete and scholar who made a significant contribution to the campus and community.

The winner of this year’s Harris Cup is Mike DiMarco.  A two-time First Team All-Landmark Conference selection and 2011 Second Team All-Region selection, DiMarco helped lead the CUA men’s soccer team to a pair of conference championships during his four years with the Cardinals.  DiMarco was named the 2008 conference Rookie of the Year, and finished his career with 16 goals, 11 assists, 39 points and five game-winning goals in 81 matches.

An accounting major, DiMarco carried a 3.73 grade point average and made multiple appearances on the Dean’s List and Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll.  DiMarco earned Academic All-District honors in each of the past two years and served as the President of SAAC in 2011-12.

DiMarco was also a member of the accounting society at CUA, as well as Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society, and he is the co-founder and co-president of the committee to improve the accounting curriculum, while also serving as a tutor for the office of academic success.  In addition, DiMarco worked with Soccer Madness, a youth clinic in the Washington, D.C. area, he visited Manchester Children’s Hospital in the United Kingdom, as well as the Armed Forces Retirement Home in D.C., and he was a part of MLK, Jr. Day of Service.

Check out the 2011-12 CUA Athletics Year-in-Review video down below.