BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College honored its 2015 senior student-athletes at the annual Senior Athletics Awards Banquet Wednesday night in Johnston Hall. Softball first baseman Jenn Dalickas and women's basketball standout Alexis Wright were named the Co-Outstanding Senior Female Athletes while men's cross country All-American and track runner Dillon Farrell was honored with the Outstanding Senior Male Athlete award. The Blue & Grey Scholar Athlete awards were presented to women's cross country & track student-athlete Emily Lambright and men's tennis player Lewis Cooper. The H.T.D. Gillespie Award for outstanding service to Moravian's athletics program was presented to Dr. John Reynolds.
Dalickas was honored as the Lehigh Valley Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women Outstanding Athlete in softball and was also Moravian's Co-LVAIAW Outstanding Athlete for the school with Wright, and Dalickas missed the banquet Wednesday evening as she traveled with the rest of the Moravian softball team to the NCAA Division III Super Regional at DePauw University. The Greyhounds are 37-6 on the season and begin a best-of-three series at DePauw on Friday with a berth in next week's NCAA Division III World Series on the line.
Dalickas earned a spot on the National Fastpitch Coaches Association/Louisville Slugger All-Atlantic Region First Team this week, the fourth straight year she has earned First Team honors and the first in the Atlantic Region. Dalickas is looking to become the Greyhounds' third multiple All-American next Wednesday when the team is announced after being on the NFCA/Louisville Slugger All-America Second Team in 2014. Dalickas is also a four-time Landmark All-Conference First Team, and she was the Landmark Conference Player of the Year in 2015 and 2014. Dalickas was the ECAC Division III South Player of the Year in 2014, and she is a three-time ECAC Division III South All-Star selection, making the first team in 2012 and 2014.
On the field this season, Dalickas leads Moravian with a .486 batting average to go along with 51 hits, 43 runs, 13 doubles, nine home runs to set the school mark with 35 in her career, 32 RBIs, 91 total bases, an .867 slugging percentage, a school record 49 walks and a .656 on-base percentage. Dalickas, who played first base for the second straight spring, has 237 putouts and 10 assists in the field. In her career, Dalickas has collected 203 hits, the third player in school history to reach the 200-hit milestone, and she has a .446 average at the plate in 161 games to go with 132 runs, 52 doubles, five triples, a school-record 35 home runs, 158 RBIs, a school-record 86 walks, a school-record .813 slugging percentage and a .537 on-base percentage.
"I am honored and excited to win this award and humbled as well," Dalickas stated while awaiting the flight to Indianapolis for the NCAA Super Regional. "It is a great honor and I'm glad to share it with Alexis. I've known her since we played against each other on the basketball court in high school, and we've both had great careers and been All-Americans since we came to Moravian. I wish I could have been at the banquet but I'm excited to be with my teammates and see how far we can go into the NCAA Tournament."
Wright was also honored as the LVAIAW Outstanding Athlete in basketball. This past winter while leading the Greyhounds to a 15-12 record and a berth in the ECAC Division III South Semifinals, Wright was named the Landmark Conference Defensive Player of the Year, and she also earned spots on the Landmark All-Conference First Team and the D3hoops.com All-Mid-Atlantic Region Second Team. Wright, who missed 20 games in her junior year due to an injury, was a Women's Basketball Coaches Association and Women's DIII News Honorable Mention All-American in 2013 as well as earning spots on the D3hoops.com All-Mid-Atlantic Region, ECAC Division III South and Landmark All-Conference First Teams. Wright was the Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year in 2012.
This past winter, Wright averaged a double-double of 15.6 points and a school-record 12.1 rebounds per contest, and she had 18 double-doubles in 2014-15 for a total of 41 double-doubles in her career. Wright led the Greyhounds with 65 blocked shots and 59 steals to go with 41 assists this past season. Wright finished her career second in school history with 948 career rebounds and 204 career blocked shots, and she ranks eighth all-time in scoring with 1,341 points in 93 career games. Wright's career rebounding average of 10.2 per contest is nearly a whole rebound higher than Kathy Beck's previous mark of 9.3.
"It feels good to win the award especially after seeing Katie O'Rourke win it last year. It is nice to have another graduating women's basketball player win it," Wright explained. "It means a lot and shows that all the hard work has paid off. It's great to share the award with Jenn especially since I knew her before we came to Moravian, and it's been great to watch her succeed during her career as well."
Farrell became Moravian's first-ever men's cross country All-American when he placed 17th in the nation last November at the 2014 NCAA Division III Cross Country National Championships. On the country courses, Farrell was a three-time Landmark All-Conference First Team selection including winning individual conference titles in 2012 and 2013 to be named the Landmark Conference Runner of the Year. He also a three-time NCAA All-Mideast Region honoree, and Farrell earned All-Freshman Mideast Region honors in 2011. He holds the school and conference records for an 8,000-meter cross country course at 24:24.90 at this year's national championship meet. Moravian won the Landmark team titles in 2011 and 2012.
Farrell has been just as productive on the track, winning the Landmark indoors titles in the 3,000-meter and 5,000-meter runs in 2014 as he was named the Landmark Indoor Track Athlete of the Year and another three titles in the 10,000-meter run outdoors including the 2015 meet. Farrell finished in the top five in an event in the conference championships 20 times for the track program, and he has made the Landmark All-Conference Second Team five times for runner-up performances. He also owns three school records on the track including the 3,000 meters both indoors and outdoors and the 10,000 meters outdoors. Farrell is also a nine-time selection to the Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll.
"This means more than I'm able to put into words," said Farrell. "I remember former teammate Kris Joint winning this award last year. I didn't even know that there was an award like this before that. This is something that isn't just one race but shows your commitment over four years. It is like a distance race since you have to commit for those four years. By no means could I have earned with without coach Jesse Baumann. He's a tremendous coach and will be a friend for life."
Lambright has had an outstanding senior year on the cross country and track squads. She was on the Landmark All-Conference First Team and NCAA Division III All-Mideast Region squad in cross country. Lambright was also named the Landmark Conference Senior Scholar-Athlete of cross country while being a nine-time selection to the Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll. On the track this year, Lambright is a four-time Landmark Champion as she won the 3,000-meter and 5,000-meter runs indoors and the 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter runs outdoors. Lambright has a 4.00 grade point average and is majoring in economics and political science with a minor in mathematics.
"I'm happy and I consider this a really high honor," Lambright explained. "I am really thankful to my coaches because they have done a lot to help me get here. They made it possible for me to be both a scholar and an athlete."
Cooper was a four-year letterwinner for the men's tennis team and also played on the men's soccer squad for three seasons. This spring, Cooper set the school record for career doubles victories on the tennis courts, finishing with a 45-25 record. He also helped Moravian win inaugural ECAC Division III Outdoor Championship and tie the school record with a 13-7 mark. Cooper was 16-8 in doubles action this season, and he had a 17-7 singles slate, the third-most wins in a single campaign to complete his career at 43-26. Cooper has a 3.94 grade point average and majoring in mathematics and computer science.
"It means a lot to receive this award. I've put a lot of effort into everything and this shows that everyone appreciates it," commented Cooper. "All the coaches and staff, especially Coach Dapp have been great during my four years, and it means a lot that they put so much effort into us as student-athletes."
Reynolds came to Moravian in 1979 as a political science professor, and he is currently serving as the department chair. Reynolds was the Greyhounds' Faculty Athletic Representative for 10 years, and his son J. William Reynolds '03, a current member of the Bethlehem City Council, played basketball for retiring men's basketball coach Jim Walker.