BROOKLYN, N.Y. – LIU Brooklyn senior softball player Whitney West was named Female Athlete of the Year, while graduate student track star Brendon Rodney earned Male Athlete of the Year honors at the school's annual athletic awards banquet held Monday evening at the Steinberg Wellness Center. Seniors Keaton Sprague of the men's soccer team and Adriana Viñas Joy of the volleyball team were named LIU's Scholar-Athletes of the Year.
 
The two-time All-Northeast Conference selection during her career, West has compiled a career-high 60 hits during the 2016 season, and surpassed former All-American Randi Gillespie and three-time First Team All-NEC selection Vanessa Mejia for first place on LIU's all-time hits list. She ranks among the NEC's leaders in hits, triples, runs scored and total bases, and has been the catalyst for an offense that has a league-best .339 batting average against conference opponents. In addition to sitting atop the career hits list, West also ranks second in career triples and has cracked the career Top 10 list in batting average, runs scored and total bases.

One of the top overall athletes in the Northeast Conference history, Rodney claimed Northeast Conference Indoor Sprinter of the Meet honors after helping LIU Brooklyn to its third straight team title in February. The Canada native won the 60-meter dash and the 200-meter dash, while claiming second in the 400. His 200-meter time of 20.46 was the fastest by any collegiate sprinter in the nation during the indoor season. He was named the USTFCCCA Northeast Region Athlete of the Year during the indoor season, and became the first Blackbird in program history to earn First-Team All-America honors with a fourth-place showing at NCAA Indoor National Championships.

The scholar-athlete awards are presented annually to the male and female student-athletes who will graduate in May and have the highest overall grade-point averages through the fall semester. Viñas Joy was a member of the NEC's Commissioner's Honor Roll in each of her four years at LIU Brooklyn, and will graduate with a 3.92 GPA as a marketing major. Sprague also garnered Commissioner's Honor Roll accolades during his time in downtown Brooklyn, and accumulated a 3.90 grade point average while earning his bachelor's degree in marketing.
 
In addition to the Athlete of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards, LIU also announced award winners from each sport and its other major award recipients.

Male Athlete of the Year: Brendon Rodney, Gr., Men's Track & Field
 
Female Athlete of the Year: Whitney West, Sr., Softball
 
Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Keaton Sprague, Sr., Men's Soccer
 
Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Adriana Viñas Joy, Sr., Volleyball
 
Michelle Hamdan Memorial Award: Allegra Ondrejka, R-Jr., Women's Soccer
 
Dolly King Athletic Excellence Award: Mica Jonathan Petit-Homme, Sr., Men's Track & Field
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.
 
Clair Isicson-Merle Athletic Excellence Award: Lucy Gunton-Jones, Sr., Women's Soccer
Presented to the student-athlete who exemplifies leadership, sportsmanship and achievement that Clair Isicson-Merle personified as a student and an athlete.
 
Leonard Ching International Student-Athlete Award: Gabriella Ade-Onojobi, 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.
 
Men's Soccer
            Ledet Senior Leadership: Jacob Smith, R-Sr.
            Joe Machnik Ambassador: Tanner Sica, Sr.
 
Women's Soccer
            MVP: Lucy Gunton-Jones, Sr.
            Blackbird: Erin Fish, Sr.

Volleyball
            MVP: Adriana Viñas Joy, Sr.
            Blackbird: Tamara Ignjic, Sr.

Cross Country
            MVP: Esther Jean-Louis, So.
            Blackbird: Niteesa Brooks, Sr.
 
Women's Indoor Track & Field
            Most Improved: Gabriella Ade-Onojobi, Sr.
            MVP: Cassandra Jones, Jr.
 
Men's Indoor Track & Field
            Most Improved: Nicholas Ruiz, Sr.
            MVP: Brendon Rodney, Gr.
 
Women's Bowling
            MVP: Natasha Bidwell, Sr.
            Blackbird: Kristina Genova, So.
 
Men's Basketball
            Co-MVP: Jerome Frink, Jr.
            Co-MVP: Martin Hermannsson, So.
 
Women's Basketball
            MVP: Shanice Vaughn, Sr.
            Blackbird: Brianna Farris, Jr.
 
Lacrosse
            MVP: TBA*
            Blackbird: Tori Shinkowitz, So.

Tennis
            MVP: TBA*
            Blackbird: Caroline Koenigsfeldt, Sr.
  
Women's Outdoor Track & Field
            Blackbird: TBA*
            Blackbird: TBA*
 
Men's Outdoor Track & Field
            Blackbird: TBA*
            Blackbird: TBA*
 
Softball
            SP Award: Angie Vazquez, So.
            MVP: TBA*
 
Baseball
            Frank Giannone Award: John Knauth, Sr.
            MVP: TBA*
 
Men's Golf
            MVP: Stewart Gray, Sr.
            Lonnie Barton Memorial: Daniel Reale, Fr.
 
Women's Golf
            MVP: Lauren Rutherglen, So.
            Lonnie Barton Memorial: Sara Ciliberto, Fr.

* Award will be handed out at a later date.