Special events/announcements summer 2020
Athletics honors student-athletes during 73rd Annual Varsity Awards Program
Binghamton athletics showcased its 73rd Annual Varsity Awards Program Friday night and for the first time in school history it was an online celebration broadcast across the department’s Facebook and Youtube platforms. The department honored its 400+ student-athletes and celebrated the achievements of the 2019-20 year - an historic year cut short in mid-March by the coronavirus pandemic.
During the evening, BU recognized its 76 graduating seniors and two of them - distance runner Mitch Halpern and women’s basketball player Karlee Krchnavi offered reflections on their time at Binghamton.
University president Harvey Stenger opened the program with praise and encouragement for the student-athletes.
“Not playing is the worst part of sports, so I know how you feel,” Stenger said. “Thank you so much for everything you’ve done for Binghamton University through your participation in athletics and as great students as well. I know you will be back stronger than ever.”
The awards presented honored academic achievement, community service, individual perseverance and athletics excellence for the 2019-20 year and career distinction as well. The night culminated with the unveiling of the Highlight Video, created by athletics communications video specialist Sydney Harbaugh.
Seniors took home the prominent career awards. Men’s lacrosse standout Dan Mottes was a double winner, earning a Jake Pitler Award as well as an Academic Achievement Award for sharing the highest overall grade-point average in the department (3.98 in accounting). Swim standout Ross Bernstein was the other Pitler Award winner for his career achievements in the pool.
The Jessie A. Godfrey Award featured two recipients - soccer player Abby Wick and basketball player Karlee Krchnavi.
The John Bilos Alumni Awards were presented to the male and female judged to have produced the most outstanding career athletics accomplishments. Those winners were track and field standout Jack Fitzgerald and basketball Player of the Year Kai Moon.
See the complete list of athletes honored online.
Basketball star Greenberg featured in 50th Anniversary of Women’s Athletics celebration
Former basketball All-American Bess Greenberg was revealed Friday as No. 22 in the list of the 25 most prominent women during Binghamton’s first 50 years of women’s athletics. The celebration has included individual profiles rolled out chronologically, interviews, flashbacks and memories dating back to the first intercollegiate women’s team, the 1969-70 women’s swimming and diving team.
In her profile posted here, Greenberg discusses her family and their bond through sports, her decision to come to Binghamton University, the role that basketball has played in her life and how her passions have grown since graduating in 2001. A two-time Division II All-American, Greenberg is the school’s all-time scoring leader with 2,024 career points (18.2 per game). With Greenberg in the starting lineup, Binghamton teams averaged more than 24 wins a season and enjoyed a lofty win percentage of 86% (97-16).
In addition, former BU head coach Laurie Kelly shares her memories of Bess as an elite basketball player and compassionate person.
The complete list of prominent women is here.
There are three more individuals to be unveiled and then a 50th Anniversary video commemorating the university’s history of women’s athletics will cap the celebration.
‘Cat Couples: Rob Mansell and Connie Gormley
Basketball teammate Alex Ogundadegbe takes full credit for the relationship match between Rob Mansell BS ‘14, MS ‘15 and soccer player Connie Gormley ‘15.
It was fall 2011 and Mansell was prepping for his sophomore basketball season. Gormley was in the midst of her freshman season on BU’s soccer back line. Their paths had crossed casually on campus, during each of the all-too-few times Mansell attended Spanish class, he recalls.
Of course, there was a general mutual knowledge, with Mansell being a rising standout and eventual leading scorer on the basketball team, and Gormley quickly settling into an elite soccer career.
Ogundadegbe played matchmaker and posed the connection to his friend, Gormley.
“I asked Connie who she thought was cute on the basketball team … and I asked her about Rob,” he says. “She was intrigued. From there, I let Rob know and the rest is history.”
Assisting in the initial connection was Gormley’s serendipitous discovery of Mansell’s student ID, which he had lost outside one of the dorms in Mountainview. She turned it over to Ogundadegbe and Mansell sent her a note on Facebook to say thanks and saving him the hassle and cost of getting a new ID. All she asked in return was for him to bake her a chocolate cake.
“He thought I was joking about the cake and we kept talking from there,” she says. “The thing is … I wasn’t joking and he never made it for me. I still bring it up.”
Student-athletes share reflections during COVID-19
When the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of the world in early March 2020, the impact on Binghamton and all NCAA student-athletes was swift and dramatic. Winter and spring seasons were suddenly halted and students were sent home to finish out the semester with online courses. The day-to-day student and student-athlete experience was instantly changed.
Now five weeks into this new “normal,” many BU student-athletes have shared their thoughts online.
Read the full selection of reflections online.