CORTLAND, N.Y. - The State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) is proud to present the winners of the annual Men's Indoor Track & Field Track Athlete, Field Athlete, Rookie and Coach of the Year awards. These awards are voted on by the coaches within the conference.
Field Athlete of the Year: Dawan Jones, Cortland
In his final season as a Red Dragon, Jones, a senior from Buffalo, New York has been named the men's Field Athlete of the Year. Jones was recognized as a SUNYAC Athlete of the Week multiple times this year. At the SUNYAC Championship Jones took first place in the triple jump with a leap of 14.60 meters and earned a placed on the All-Conference First Team for his performance. Jones has displayed strong performances throughout his career with his best performances at the 2018 Cornell Sunday Invitational with third place win in long jump (6.99 meters) and at the 2018 Cornell Kane Invitational with a first place finish in the triple jump (14.79 meters).
Track Athlete of the Year: Isaac Garcia-Cassani, Geneseo
From Holbrook, N.Y., Garcia-Cassani wins the Track Athlete of the Year award for the second year in a row. In the post-season Garcia-Cassani took first place at the SUNYAC Championship in the 3000 with a time of 8:38.48. Soon enough he beat his own time at the NCAA DIII Indoor Track and Field Championships taking second place in the same event with a new time of 8:18.19, over 20 seconds faster than his previous. Along with that big finish, Garcia-Cassani was on the Knights medley relay team, which took first place at the NCAA Championship as well.
Rookie of the Year: Easton Reagan, Cortland
New to the squad, Reagan has shown great promise in his first season as a Red Dragon. From Schenectady, N.Y. the freshman has been selected as the Rookie of the Year. During his first season, Reagan posted top finishes as a multi-event athlete. At the SUNYAC championship this year, Reagan finished second in the 400 meter with a time of 50.52. Along with that he had another second place finish at the Ithaca College Bomber Invitational in the 1000 meter with a time of 2:43.56. Lastly, at that same invitational, the freshman was able to finish in the top 20 of the heptathlon, placing 16th with a total of 4036 points.
Coach of the Year: Chris Popovici, Geneseo
Popovici, in his fourth season with the Knights, has been named Coach of the Year for the second year in a row. Yet again, Popovici has continued to lead the Knights squad to high levels of success. At the SUNYAC championships the Knights showed their dominance winning their second SUNYAC title in a row for both the men's and women's teams. The Knights continued their success at the NCAA DIII National Championships as the men's team finished tied for ninth.
