Army West Point Athletics
Army Holds 2013 Black Knight Awards
May 19, 2013 | General
May 19, 2013
2012-13 Highlight Film | Blooper Reel 1 | Blooper Reel 2
WEST POINT, N.Y. - The Army Athletic Association held the 2013 Black Knight Awards ceremony on Sunday night at Robinson Auditorium. The department's premiere year-end event honored teams and individuals for an outstanding 2012-13 season. Women's basketball took home Team of the Year, the highest honor of the evening.
In its sixth year of existence, the Black Knight Awards honor the best that Army's 25 athletic teams had to offer in 2012-13 in an award-show format similar to the ESPY Awards. Rich DeMarco, assistant athletic director for marketing, multimedia and broadcasting, emceed the event and guided an audience of more than 500 people through the evening affair.
Deputy Military Athletic Director Col. Joseph DeAntona opened the night by handing out commemorative athletic director's coins to a large group of league major award winners, scholar-athletes, All-Americans, Academic All-Americans, Senior CLASS Award finalists and NCAA participants. Deputy Athletic Director Jonathan Evans followed with the presentation of the Army A Club Award, which went to long-time athletics supporters Darrell and Cheryl Massie.
Senior hockey player Cheyne Rocha was a unanimous decision for the Community Service Award for his efforts in spearheading "Neighborhood Knights" and "House of Blues." In addition, Liz Benedict of the women's basketball team received the Maggie Dixon Inspiration Award. Benedict battled through devastating injuries throughout her career, but still managed to contribute whether on or off the court. She was praised for embodying all that Dixon stood for - fearlessness, competitiveness and love for sport. Finally, Jordan Springer of the men's basketball team garnered the Gene Uchacz Memorial Award for being the epitome of a "team player."
The remainder of the awards were distributed on athletic performance alone during the 2012-13 season. Each nominee was highlighted through a video presentation leading into each award with the majority including a men's and women's category. The evening followed with awards for Rookie of the Year, Yearling of the Year, Cow of the Year, Firstie of the Year, Performance of the Year and Play of the Year. All of the winners were presented with a crystal Black Knight Award for their accomplishments.
Votes were tabulated using a combination of Facebook, Twitter, athletic department committee and the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
As the West Point community prepares for graduation exercises this Saturday, the Army athletics season continues. The track and field teams are sending individuals to the NCAA Regionals, while the baseball team won the 2013 Patriot League title and is off to the NCAA Tournament behind head coach Joe Sottolano.
2013 Black Knight Award Winners
Army A Club Award
Darrell and Cheryl Massie
Community Service Award
Cheyne Rocha (Hockey)
Maggie DixonInspiration Award
Liz Benedict (Basketball)
Gene Uchacz Memorial Award
Jordan Springer (Basketball)
Play of the Year
Larry Toomey (Basketball) - Dunk vs. Bucknell
Men's Performance of the Year
Trent Steelman (Football) vs. Boston College
Women's Performance of the Year
Morgan Lashley (Softball) vs. Lehigh
Men's Rookie of the Year
Kyle Wilson (Basketball)
Women's Rookie of the Year
Kelsey Minato (Basketball)
Men's Yearling of the Year
John Glesener (Lacrosse)
Women's Yearling of the Year
Lisa Junta (Cross Country/Track & Field)
Men's Cow of the Year
Asika Isoh (Tennis)
Women's Cow of the Year
Jamila Paul (Tennis)
Men's Firstie of the Year
Javier Sustaita (Sprint Football)
Women's Firstie of the Year
Ariana Mankus (Volleyball)
Team of the Year
Women's Basketball
