PURCHASE, N.Y. - The Manhattanville Athletic Department held its annual Athletics Awards Banquet on Monday night inside Reid Castle's West Library, as the department celebrated the achievements of all its 330-plus student-athletes and recognized 11 outstanding student-athletes and key contributors to the success of athletics at Manhattanville.
 
The department handed out the customary 10 awards on Monday night, including Male and Female Athlete, Rookie and Scholar-Athlete of the Year Awards, as well as the Humanitarian of the Year, the Sports Medicine Award, the Athletic Director's Award and the Valiant Plaque. The recipients were recognized in front of a banquet setting that included honored student-athletes, athletic department and college staff and faculty, as well as friends of the department.
 
The complete list of winners are:
 
Co-Male Athlete of the Year
Eros Olazabal (Milton, Ontario/Bishop Reding), Men's Soccer
Olazabal had a season to remember for the Valiant men's soccer team as a junior, leading all of Division III in goals per game and earning the program's first-ever All-America honor with a spot on the D3Soccer.com second team. After scoring a total of five goals in 16 games combined in his first two seasons for Manhattanville, he matched that output in the very first game of the 2011 season, setting a new program single-game record with 11 points. That was a sign of things to come for the junior, as Olazabal shattered school single-season records with 26 goals and 57 points in leading the Valiants to the second NCAA Tournament appearance in program history.
 
Co-Male Athlete of the Year
Dan Fiorito (Yonkers, N.Y./Fordham Prep), Baseball
After being named a top-three draft prospect in Division III at the start of the season, Fiorito has spent much of the year justifying the hype, batting .415 and hitting a career-high nine homers as a senior and earning national honors in early April by being named the NCBWA Division III Player of the Week. A three-year starter for the Valiants and 2010 Manhattanville Male Rookie of the Year, he currently has a .398 batting average with 18 home runs and 103 runs batted in for his career. He ranks in the school's top-10 all-time in most offensive categories, including batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, runs scored, hits, homers and runs batted in despite playing just three years.
 
Female Athlete of the Year
Emy Cote (Saint-Hubert, Quebec/Dawson College), Women's Hockey/Women's Lacrosse
One of the most successful goalkeepers in Manhattanville women's hockey history, Cote finished her highly decorated career with 29 wins, which places her fifth on the all-time wins list at the school. She led the team to back-to-back ECAC East Championship games, and almost single-handedly carried the team to the title in 2011 by making a program playoff-record 42 saves in the title game to earn Tournament MVP honors. As a senior, she was named to the ECAC East Conference second team at the conclusion of the year. After hockey season ended, Cote also took her goaltending talents to the lacrosse field and helped the women's lacrosse team reach the Freedom Conference Tournament as well.
 
Male Rookie of the Year
Yani Quinteros (Shirley, N.Y./William Floyd), Men's Soccer
Quinteros had an excellent first season with the men's soccer team and showcased his flair for the dramatic, as all four of his goals were game-winners. He burst onto the scene during the 2011 Valiant Classic with an overtime game-winner against Vassar and, after regulation game-winners against Farmingdale and FDU-Florham, he helped to clinch the top seed in the Freedom Conference Tournament with a dramatic double-overtime score in a key Freedom Conference win against Eastern. In 20 games, he also picked up five assists to give him 13 points in his first season.
 
Female Rookie of the Year
Alexis Lanzillotti (Wallkill, N.Y./Wallkill), Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
Lanzillotti has had an immediate impact on the Manhattanville track and field program, setting seven new program records in her first year alone. She was the team's best sprinter during the indoor season, posting the best 60m, 200m and 400m times in program history, and finished the season off with second-team All-Conference recognition in the 800m. She has followed that up by breaking every major sprinting record during the outdoor season as well, including setting and re-setting the program 800m mark three times.
 
Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Michael Capozzi (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/San Judas Tadeo), Men's Tennis
Capozzi has had a nearly unparalleled academic and athletic career at Manhattanville. In the classroom, he boasts a 3.978 GPA as a finance and sociology double major with an Italian minor, and was named the program's first CoSIDA Academic All-American in 27 years in 2011 while also earning MAC Men's Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors just last week. On the courts, Capozzi is a two-time Freedom Conference Player of the Year and the program's all-time winningest player with 64 career singles wins and 61 career doubles victories entering this week.
 
Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Alyssa Coughlan (Rye, N.Y./Rye), Field Hockey
Coughlan completed an excellent four-year career on the field hockey field and in the classroom for Manhattanville during the fall. A three-time MAC Fall Academic Honor Roll recipient, she boasts a 3.833 cumulative GPA as a finance major with dual minors in history and sociology. On the field, she scored 16 goals with 13 assists for 45 career points as a Valiant, while also ranking eighth in career games played at Manhattanville.
 
Humanitarian of the Year
Manhattanville Men's Basketball Team
The Manhattanville men's basketball team as a unit is recognized for their adoption and support of former teammate AJ Buchanan, who lost his brave battle with cancer in February. While healthy, AJ became a full-fledged member of the team, sitting on the bench during games and providing his unique manner of support to the players both home and away. After AJ was forced back into the hospital during the winter, the team started the “AJ5 Fund” to raise money for AJ and his family and remained by his side daily through constant visits to the hospital. After his death, the team honored his memory with powder blue warm-up tops and recently participated in a cancer walk in his name.
 
Sports Medicine Award
Evan Michalchuk (Edmonton, Alta./Salmon Arm Silverbacks (BCHL)), Men's Hockey/Men's Golf
Michalchuk battled numerous injuries throughout his senior season to remain a vital contributor to the Manhattanville men's hockey program while also contributing to the Valiant golf program as well. A two-year assistant captain on the ice as a sophomore and junior, Michalchuk dressed in 23 games as a senior co-captain and set new career highs with five goals and 18 assists for 23 points, and finished tied for fourth on the school's career game-winning goals list (seven).
 
Athletic Director's Award
Makana Gomes (Honolulu, Hawaii/'Iolani), Women's Volleyball
Gomes has been a consistent contributor to the Athletic Department since her first day on campus, and has carried herself as the true definition of a Valiant. A four-year starter on the Manhattanville volleyball team, she endured four coaches in four years and overcame adversity to provide much-needed leadership for a perpetually young program. Gomes also is greatly involved in other activities outside of athletics, putting her stamp on the school in virtually every area.
 
Valiant Plaque
Dan Hannon, Physical Plant
Hannon has been a tremendous supporter of the Manhattanville Athletic Department for many years, serving as one of the department's go-to people whenever there is an issue with facilities. At all hours of the day, Hannon is always available to deal with a problem and keep our activities running as smoothly as possible. Hannon previously won the Valiant Plaque award back in 1997 as well.