ALFRED, NY – Alfred University senior student-athletes Connor Doud (Ballston Spa, NY/Ballson Spa), Dana Torchia (Pompton Plains, NJ/Pequannock Twp.) and Nicole Maher (Newark, DE/Caravel Academy) have been named 2016 recipients of the University's Ideal Saxon awards.
 
The Ideal Saxon award, established in 2013, is an annual honor that recognizes the achievements of a male senior and a female senior student-athlete at Alfred University who "displays excellence in both academics and athletics while providing service and leadership of distinction to the AU Community."
 
Doud is this year's male recipient, while Torchia and Maher, teammates on the AU softball team, share the female honor.
 
Doud, Torchia and Maher were honored as the fourth annual award winners during the Senior Student-Athlete Recognition Luncheon on Friday. The luncheon, sponsored by Friends of Saxon Athletics (FSA) is held each year on the Friday before Commencement.
 
"Today's luncheon, sponsored by Friends of Saxon Athletics, allows us to recognize the many notable accomplishments of Saxon athletes this past year. We have much to be proud of as the Purple and Gold continues to excel both on and off the fields of competitive play," Paul Vecchio, Director of Athletics at AU, commented. "I believe that our Ideal Saxon Award winners this year – Connor, Nicole and Dana – are a tremendous reflection of our goals in Alfred University athletics. They competed at the highest level of Division III athletics, won and lost with grace and dignity and left a tremendous legacy by their noteworthy accomplishments in their sports, our classrooms and amongst our campus and community."
 
Doud was a four-year record-setting member of the men's tennis team, earning Empire 8 All-Conference honors each of his four seasons as a Saxon. Twice (2014, 2016) he was a First Team selection; he was a Second Team pick in 2015 and earned honorable mention in 2013.
 
He will leave AU holding several career and single-season records. His 53 career singles wins and 91 career combined singles-doubles victories are school records and his 38 doubles wins rank second all-time, just one off the school mark. His 18 singles wins and 29 combined wins this year are single-season records. Doud is a two-time E8 All-Star in doubles as well, earning Second Team recognition in 2014 and honorable mention this spring. In 2016, he teamed with senior Matt Baloga (Goshen, NY/Goshen) for 10 double wins, tied the school single-season record for a doubles pair.
 
A mechanical engineering major, Doud has a 3.16 cumulative GPA. From 2014-16 he was a representative on the AU Student-Athlete Advisory Council and this academic year he served as an inaugural representative for all AU student-athletes on the E-Board for the Student Senate. He is this year's male winner of the ECAC Merit Medal, awarded to a senior for academic and athletic excellence.
 
On being considered for the Ideal Saxon award, Doud commented:
 
"Not only have I impacted my team but they have also impacted me, without their support I would not have been able to set school records. Every time I put on my uniform I am proud to be a Saxon. If I were to be chosen as the Ideal Saxon it would give me a sense of pride knowing that I am amongst other great athletes and alumni. Ever since I started at Alfred University I knew I wanted to leave a legacy."
 
Torchia was a three-time Empire 8 All-Star and four-year starting infielder for the Saxon softball team, earning honorable mention in 2014 and 2016 and Second Team recognition in 2015. She was an NFCA Northeast Region Third Team All-Star in 2015.
 
A two-year captain for the Saxons, Torchia finished her career second on the AU career list for runs, third in hits and sixth in RBIs.
 
Torchia majors in marketing and carries a 3.64 grade point average. She earned CoSIDA Academic All-District 3 honors last year and has been a member of the Empire 8 President's List for academic achievement two semesters (Fall 2012, Fall 2013). She is a member of the Chi Alpha Sigma, Delta Mu Delta, Beta Gamma Sigma, Alpha Iota Delta, ODK and Mu Kappa Tau academic honor societies. Twice (2012-13, 2013-14), she was an NFCA All-American Scholar Athlete. Torchia is this year's female winner of the ECAC Merit Medal.
 
On what it means to be considered as an Ideal Saxon, Torchia said:
 
"In terms of a legacy, through my actions I wanted to show my teammates and classmates that athletes should work hard on and off the field. Being a successful athlete is a great accomplishment, but finding success in all aspects of life through passion and a good work ethic is an even better accomplishment. Being named an Ideal Saxon would be an honor because to me it represents an individual who has the desire to be well rounded and focuses on more in life than playing sports."
 
Maher was the starting shortstop for the AU softball team four seasons, earning Empire 8 All-Conference honors three times: First Team in 2014 and 2015 and Second Team in 2016. She was an ECAC Upstate All-Star in 2014 and 2015. She was an NFCA Northeast Region Second Team All-Star in 2015.
 
Two times (2014 and 2015), Maher was named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team and in 2015 she was a member of the Empire 8 Conference Championship All-Tournament Team.
 
Maher will leave Alfred holding the top spots of three school career records lists: hits, doubles and RBIs. She is fifth in career runs and eighth in career batting average.
 
An NFCA All-American Scholar Athlete in 2012-13, Maher is a biology major who carries a 2.9 GPA. Maher is a Green Dot Committee member and served as a Peer Mentor in 2015-16. This year, she is the recipient of the Muriel Strong Morley Award for Outstanding Female Athlete.
 
On being a candidate for Ideal Saxon, Maher commented:
 
"There have been many challenges especially during the softball season juggling academics with sports; however, I have always been taught, if you want something bad enough to work hard and never give up on your dreams. Receiving the Ideal Saxon Award would be the highlight of my college career. It would represent my hard work and dedication to my education, my sport, and helping others."
 
Maher and Torchia are members of a senior class on the softball team that combined for 122 wins, the most of any four-year period in program history. They were members of the only Saxon team ever to win an Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament title (2015) and outright regular season conference crown (2015). They played on two of the three teams in program history to compete in the NCAA Division III championship tournament (2014 and 2015), including last year's squad, which won the school's first-ever Regional and Super Regional titles and played in the Division III College World Series in Salem, VA.
 
Other finalists for the Ideal Saxon awards were:
 
FEMALE: Kerry Mack (Weedsport, NY/Jordan-Elbridge), lacrosse; Kelsey McRill (Solon, OH/Solon), swimming and diving; and Jasmine Picini (Alexandria, VA/West Potomac), softball.
 
MALE: Omar Mohamed (Kakuma, Kenya/Edison Tech), soccer; Corry Wallace (Mastic Beach, NY/Longwood), football; Max Wilson (Menlo Park, CA/Menlo-Atherton), lacrosse; Michael Berardi (Wellsville, NY/Wellsville), football; and Pat Byrne (Boston, NY/Hamburg), lacrosse.
 
Also on Friday, the University recognized the following student-athlete award winners:
 
ECAC Merit Medal: Doud and Torchia. The award, given each year to a male and female senior, recognizes academic and athletic excellence.
 
Muriel Strong Morley Award, Outstanding Female Athlete: Maher.
 
Franklin Morley Award, Outstanding Male Athlete: Wallace.
 
Chi Alpha Sigma honorees: senior and junior student-athletes with cumulative GPA of 3.40 or higher. Senior winners are: Berardi; Michael Brien (Victor, NY/Victor), football;  Byrne; Julie Canova (Maspeth, NY/Mary Louis Academy), softball; Emma Jackson (Wellsville, NY/Wellsville), women's tennis; Sarah Kichman (Portville, NY/Portville), women's basketball; Melissa Marletta (Webster, NY/Webster Schroeder), women's tennis; McRill; Jake Olson (Dansville, NY/Dansville), men's swimming and diving; Torchia; Matthew Unick (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley), men's soccer; Wilson.
 
Junior winners of the Chi Alpha Sigma awards were: Eric Adams (Lebanon, NJ/Hunterdon Central) and Tyler Seelman (Lorton, VA/Hayfield Secondary), men's basketball; Maddi Flint (Caledonia, NY/Caledonia-Mumford) and Amanda Off (New Berlin, NY/Unadilla Valley), women's basketball; Joshua Taylor (Poughkeepsie, NY/Poughkeepsie) and Shyheim Wingate (Jamaica, NY/Holy Cross), football; Robert Ensmenger (Old Bethpage, NY/Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK), men's lacrosse; Dana Ganley (Syracuse, NY/Westhill), women's lacrosse; Graeme Corrigan (Troy, NY/Troy), Kyle Craver (Great Falls, VA/Field School) and Richard Lander (Narowsburg, NY/Sullivan West), men's soccer; Hannah Lawrence (Spencer, NY/Spencer-Van Etten), softball; Samantha Brown (Spencerport, NY/Spencerport), Dylan Staniszewski (Oakton, VA/Oakton) and Leah Zimmerman (Canandaigua, NY/Canandaigua), women's swimming and diving; Kyle Merrifield (Amherst, NY/Sweet Home), men's tennis; Courtney Ferrara (Pittsford, NY/Pittsford Mendon), women's tennis; Mary Lou Patnaude (Burnt Hills, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake), volleyball.
 
Other student-athletes honors included: Berardi, CoSIDA/CapitalOne District 3 All-Academic; Lander, CoSIDA District 3 All-Academic and CoSIDA Second Team Academic All-American, and NSCAA Third Team All-East Region.