Five standout America East basketball standouts have been named candidates for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award. Three men’s student-athletes and a pair of women’s were among the 60 nominees for the award, which honors seniors who have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
Among the America East candidates were Albany’s Peter Hooley and Shereesha Richards, Maine’s Liz Wood, Stony Brook’s Jameel Warney and Vermont’s Ethan O’Day. All five seniors were all-conference selections last year while Richards and Warney have been the conference’s respective Players of the Year each of the last two years.
The five America East honorees represent nearly 10 percent of all candidates, best among non-FBS conferences and fourth-most overall. Only the ACC, Big Ten and Big XII had more. The three men’s candidates were tied for the third most while the two women’s nominees were tied for fourth most.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Among the 60 candidates, all are in excellent academic standing with 10 having grade-point averages of 3.5 or higher. Five of this year’s candidates were 2014-15 CoSIDA Capital One Academic All-Americans®, and 20 returned to the court this season after receiving All-America honors for their performance a year ago. Each of the candidates also volunteers his or her time with charitable organizations and causes while upholding a reputation for positive character on campus and in the community.
Each of the 30 candidate classes will be narrowed to 10 finalists in February, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one male candidate and one female candidate who best exemplify excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.
The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2016 NCAA Men’s Final Four® and NCAA Women’s Final Four®.