ACCC honors student-athletes for scholastic and athletic accomplishments

Atlantic Cape Community College honored its student-athletes for their hard work, determination and perseverance in the classroom in the respective sports at the fourth annual Athletics Awards Luncheon last week at Harbor Pines Golf Club in Egg Harbor Township.

Each of the College’s 10 athletic program coaches and players were recognized for their Buccaneer spirit throughout the 2024-25 academic year, along with those who worked tirelessly behind the scenes.

“To our student-athletes, congratulations to you on a successful academic year and athletic season," said Atlantic Cape President Dr. Barbara Gaba. "You have demonstrated that you have devoted your time and effort to your practices, games and tournaments this past year. It takes dedication and focus to successfully juggle the responsibilities and demands of your studies and your sport, and you have really risen to the challenge of combining those two, and we commend you for that.

"I know that your coaches, advisors, teammates, and families have all contributed to your success by supporting you and guiding you along your path, and for that we are very grateful because, when we reach successes, we can't do it all by ourselves,” she added.

Gaba also highlighted some of the many exciting on-field and on-court achievements made this year:

• Welcomed the new women’s cross-country program.
• Hosted the first game at the new Mays Landing campus baseball field.
• Men’s and women’s basketball teams both qualified for the NJCAA Region 19 playoffs.
• Several student-athletes earned scholarships to continue their athletics at Division I and II colleges and universities.
• Archery competed in the Eastern Regional Collegiate Championships at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va.

Dr. Natalie Devonish, vice president of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, thanked Gaba for her commitment to growing Atlantic Cape’s athletics program from four to 10 teams in the past four years.

“When I came on in 2021, Dr. Gaba said to her Cabinet and leadership team that she didn’t get why we don’t have a big athletic program," Devonish said. "She asked that we, as an institution, focus on rebuilding our athletic program. Today, we celebrate our 10th active sport only four years later. So, thank you, Dr. Gaba, for your vision and your support for what we have done over the past four years.”

Awards were presented by the respective coach(es) to their student-athletes for excelling in their particular athletic program

• Archery (Head Coach John Repnicki and Assistant Coach John Ward): Most Dedicated Archer,
  Katherine Smith, and Team Leadership Award, Dan Luna.
• Baseball (Head Coach Alex Tafaro, Assistant Coaches Joseph Schipsi and Ryan Jose): Most
  Improved Player, Brian Juzaitis, and Most Valuable Player, Josh Witmer.
• Men’s Basketball (Head Coach Allen Ragland and Assistant Coach Jamal Edwards): Most
  Valuable Player, Christopher Parker; Sportsmanship Award, Omero Chevere and Most Improved
  Award, Jeremy Ellis.
• Women’s Basketball (Head Coach John Miller and Assistant Coach Ricky White): Heart &
  Hustle, Angelina Bell, and Most Valuable Player, Millinda Marigliano.
•  Women’s Cross Country (Head Coach Shane Ritchie): Most Improved Runner Award, Aaqsa
  Nimreen.
• Men’s Soccer (Head Coach Luis Paz and Assistant Coach Abdoulaye Cisse): Most Valuable
  Player, Nicholas Maldonado, and Most Improved Athlete, Dillon Bacchetta.
• Women’s Soccer (Head Coach Wesley Raywood and Assistant Coach Abigail Flemming): Team
  Spirit Award, Malina Becker, Coaches Award, Braelyn Brant, and Most Valuable Player,
  Millinda Marigliano.
• Men’s Volleyball (Head Coach Karla Maisto and Assistant Coach Josh Concepcion): Most
  Valuable Player, Alec Barnes, and Coaches Award, Nasir Hernandez-Haines.
• Women’s Volleyball (Head Coach Karla Maisto and Assistant Coach Josh Concepcion): Most
  Valuable Player, McKenna Weber, and Season Savior Award, Gianna Cox.

    The Atlantic Cape Buccaneers baseball team was honored at the luncheon. (Photo by Craig Matthews/ACCC)
  

The following student-athletes were recognized for being named to the All-Academic Team for earning
a GPA of 3.0 or higher: Carlvin Altidor, Alex Armstrong, Dillon Bacchetta, Alexander Barr, Angelina
Bell, Nicholas Boehm, Victoria Bollo Bottger, Nataly Castro, Alejandra Ceballos, Omero Chevere,
Samantha Cosme, Jeremy Ellis, Anette Bautista Escobedo, Allison Osorio Giraldo, Juno Gregory,
Nasir Hernandez-Haines, Rosalie Jogno, Giselle Lopez, Dan Luna, Millinda Marigliano, Alexandra
Montoya, Aaqsa Nimreen, Kaitlynn O’Keefe, Christopher Parker, Renata Riesenberg, Lily Robert,
Justin Sawyer, Brandon Stolfo, Gianna Tanner, Chuck Taylor, Madison Ventura, McKenna Weber and
Josh Witmer.

Men’s basketball student-athlete Christopher Parker, who has accepted a full scholarship offer to
Division I South Carolina State University in the fall, was also named the Garden State Athletic
Conference Player of the Year, 1st Team All-Region NJCAA Region 19 and 1st Team All-
Conference GSAC.

Freshman women’s basketball and soccer student-athlete Millinda Marigliano was named 1st Team
All-Conference GSAC and 2nd Team All-Region NJCAA Region 19.

Student-athletes named to the 2nd Team All-Conference GSAC included women’s volleyball sophomore
McKenna Weber, and men’s volleyball sophomores Alec Barnes and Nasir Hernandez-Haines.

Twenty-one student-athletes from the Class of 2025 were presented with a framed commemorative
Atlantic Cape Buccaneers athletics patch for their contributions to their respective athletic programs.

After thanking the College’s leadership and all of the parents in attendance, Athletic Director Jamal Edwards praised his student-athletes.

“I see you and I appreciate you because I have a front row seat to see all that you go through," he said. "All of the dedication you put in, all the time, the tears and all the sweat,” said Edwards. “From all of the late nights, all the hard work, the yelling and screaming that you get from some of us coaches. I see it and I want to thank you all, from the bottom of my heart, for all of the hard work you put in."

Provided by Atlantic Cape Community College.