SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The 2019-20 Cal State San Marcos Student-Athlete Awards went virtual this season and were announced over the course of the past week. The final two awards celebrating the department's Student-Athletes of the Year from a Men's and Women's Team were announced on Friday.
 

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NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR FROM A MEN'S TEAM
 
The Newcomer of the Year from a Men's Team is the CSUSM student-athlete who provided the biggest impact for their men's squad during their first season on campus. This year's Newcomer of the Year from a Men's Team is Blake Seits from men's basketball.
 
 
The junior from Ramona was an All-CCAA honorable mention in his first season with the Cougars and led CSUSM with 13.7 points per game and 383 total points. Seits had the best three-point field-goal percentage in the CCAA at 41.5%. His 80 3-point field goals for the season were the fourth most in program history. He also averaged 3.8 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 1.0 assist and a field-goal percentage of 44.2%.


 

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NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR FROM A WOMEN'S TEAM
 
The Newcomer of the Year from a Women's Team is the CSUSM student-athlete who provided the biggest impact for their women's team during their first season on campus. The Newcomer of the Year from a Women's Team is Gianna Lombardi from softball.
 
 
The freshman Santa Clarita native hit .356 in the abbreviated season – the best among underclassmen in the CCAA. She was second on the team with 21 hits in 19 games. Lombardi reached base safely in a team-high 16 consecutive games. She concluded her shortened freshmen campaign with  nine runs, eight doubles, seven RBIs and one home run.


 

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SPIRIT PROGRAMS AWARD
 
The Spirit Programs Award recognizes a member of the spirit program that exemplifies leadership, works hard in the classroom and always displays a positive attitude. The recipient of this award embodies all of those things as a dedicated teammate and student. The winner of this year's Sprit Programs Award is Emily Sorger from cheer.
 
 
The senior from Vista is a four-year member of the cheer team and is a computer science major. Sorger has been a leader on the team since day one and balances a blossoming career with school, cheer and snowboarding professionally. She is always willing to help her teammates with time management and studies, and she sets an example daily for women in STEM.
 

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CHARNOFSKY AWARDS
 
The Dr. Hal Charnofsky Memorial Award is given annually to two student-athletes at each Conference institution who participate in a Conference sport. Recipients are selected by their respective athletic department members in consultation with the institution's faculty athletics representative.
 
The Charnofsky Award recognizes student-athletes who have distinguished themselves in the classroom and in their sport. The award is named after the late Dr. Hal Charnofsky, a long-time faculty athletics representative from Cal State Dominguez Hills, who passed away in December 2002.
 
The winner of this year's Charnofsky Awards are Savannah Magallon from women's golf and Dylan Wannamaker from baseball.
   
Magallon, a senior from San Diego, was a WGCA All-America honorable mention and an All-CCAA first-team selection this season. She shot a collegiate career-best 69 at the Dixie State Invitational in Fall 2019. For 2020, Magallon shot a career-low scoring average of 75.38. Additionally, she had four rounds of par or better to match her 2018-19 totals. In her final collegiate contest at the CSUSM Fujikura Invitational, Magallon placed second.
 
Wannamaker, a senior pitcher from Lakeside, led the team with 57.2 innings pitched in 2019. Ha allowed the eighth-fewest walks per nine innings in a single season with 2.03 last year. Wannamaker tallied a career-high eight strikeouts against San Francisco State during the 2019 campaign. Recently, he was named to the first-ever F.A.R. Cougar All-Academic Team for earning the highest GPA on the team during the Spring 2019 and Fall 2019.
 

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ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
 
The department is also recognizing two individuals who have displayed outstanding academic achievements by earning multiple academic honors in their time at CSUSM. The winners of this year's Academic Achievement Awards are Bailey Cockrill from women's soccer and Alec Frank from men's basketball.
   
Cockrill, a senior from Bakersfield, has earned multiple academic awards during her four-year career at CSUSM. Maintaining a perfect 4.0 grade-point average over the past four years, the keeper earned CoSIDA Academic All-America second-team honors and CoSIDA Academic All-District first-team honors in 2017. She also earned the CCAA Championship Scholar Award for women's soccer in the award's inaugural year in 2017. Cockrill is a three-time CCAA All-Academic selection and has earned the CSUSM Mangrum Award for Academic Excellence in seven semesters.
 
Frank, a redshirt senior from Corona, has also earned many academic achievements as the men's basketball team's first four-year player in program history. With a cumulative GPA of 3.925, Frank is a three-time CCAA All-Academic Team selection. He is also an eight-time CSUSM Big Blue Award winner and recently earned his first CSUSM Mangrum Award for Academic Excellence. Frank was also one of 47 Cougars to earn the Division 2 Athletics Directors Association Academic Achievement Award last year.
 

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MOMENTS OF THE YEAR
 
CSUSM had many memorable moments this season. The Moments of the Year are outstanding performances within a single game by an individual or team in the fall, winter and spring.
 
FALL MOMENT OF THE YEAR
 
This year's Fall Moment of the Year belongs to Joshua Litwiller from men's cross country for his NCAA Division II West Region Championship.
 
 
Litwiller ran his way to the NCAA Division II West Region title with a personal-best 10k time of 29:54.4 on Nov. 9. This came after he became the first runner in program history to win the CCAA Championship with an 8k time of 24:40.3. He went on to earn All-America honors after placing 17th at the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships (Nov. 23) with a time of 30:15.8.
 
WINTER MOMENT OF THE YEAR
 
Our Winter Moment of the Year goes to women's basketball for defeating UC San Diego to win a share of the CCAA Regular-Season Championship for the very first time.
 
 
In the final game of the regular season at home, all the Cougars needed was a victory over the Tritons to clinch a share of the regular-season crown and the No. 1 seed at the CCAA Tournament. CSUSM did so in convincing fashion with a 75-57 win over UCSD as five Cougars scored double figures for the contest. It was the school's first CCAA Regular-Season Championship for any sport.
 
SPRING MOMENT OF THE YEAR
 
The Spring Moment of the Year is awarded to softball for going toe-to-toe in their exhibition game against Team USA.
 
 
Down 3-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, the Cougars loaded the bases with a Gianna Lombardi single, a fielder's choice by Abby Callais and a hit-by-pitch by Brittney Scardina. Pinch hitter Kayla Mack then hit a bases-clearing double off UCLA great Ally Carda to knot the game at 3-all. Despite falling 9-3, the Cougars showed their grit and determination to the very end against the world's best.
 

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VOLUNTEER COACH OF THE YEAR
 
The Department of Athletics has many volunteer coaches who work tirelessly to assist their respective teams succeed on and off the field. This year's CSUSM Volunteer Coach of the Year is A.J. Robinson from softball.
 
 
In his second season with the Cougars, Robinson has helped head coach Stef Ewing turn the program around and has played an integral part in the team's success. He's adapted to his role quickly and has done everything asked of him to help the team strive for greatness. He is a true example of what it means to Bleed Blue.
 

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ASSISTANT COACH OF THE YEAR
 
The CSUSM Assistant Coach of the Year provides valuable contributions and assists their head coach in helping their program reach its highest potential. This year's CSUSM Assistant Coach of the Year is Dario Frias from women's basketball.
 
 
In his fourth season as CSUSM's assistant coach, Frias helped the Cougars to new heights in 2019-20 by helping the team clinch a share of the CCAA Regular-Season Championship and an NCAA Division II West Regional bid. He also helped develop four All-CCAA players in Stephanie Custodio, Emma Forel, Akayla Hackson and Jon'Nae Vermillion.
 

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HEAD COACH OF THE YEAR
 
This CSUSM Head Coach of the Year is no stranger to receiving the award. Leading her team to its best season in program history, the back-to-back CSUSM Head Coach of the Year is Renee Jimenez from women's basketball.
 
 
In her fifth season on CSUSM's sideline, Jimenez's Cougars conquered the record books in 2019-20. The team set program bests for both overall wins (25) and CCAA wins (18). CSUSM also set a team record for most consecutive wins with 11. The team earned its first-ever win over a ranked opponent as a member of the NCAA while securing its first-ever victory against then-No. 6 UC San Diego. Her Cougars defeated UC San Diego again to clinch a share of the CCAA Regular-Season Championship and the No. 1 seed at the CCAA Tournament. She was subsequently named the CCAA Coach of the Year for the first time as CSUSM's head coach while four of her student-athletes earned All-CCAA honors. The Cougars went on to receive their first-ever NCAA Division II Tournament bid.
 

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STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR FROM A MEN'S TEAM
 
The Student-Athlete of the Year from a Men's Team is one that embodies CSUSM's core values. This individual not only showcases their talent on the playing field, they also show their dedication to being a well-rounded student-athlete through their passion, commitment and loyalty to CSUSM Athletics. This year's Student-Athlete of the Year from a Men's Team goes to Joshua Litwiller from men's cross country.
 
 
Litwiller became the first NCAA Division II West Region champion from a men's team in school history. He was subsequently named the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Runner of the Year. Prior to his regional win, Litwiller became the team's first CCAA champion from a men's team in program history and was named the CCAA Runner of the Year. To go along with his All-CCAA and All-West Region honors, Litwiller went on to earn USTFCCCA All-America honors after placing 17th at the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships.
 

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STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR FROM A WOMEN'S TEAM
 
The Student-Athlete of the Year From a Women's Team is an individual that represents CSUSM's core values and outwardly shows their Cougar Spirit. This person not only makes their mark as a well-rounded student-athlete, but they make their team better by encouraging, challenging and inspiring their fellow teammates. For the third consecutive year, the Student-Athlete of the Year from a Women's Team is Jaime Jacob from women's golf.
 
 
The three-time CCAA Women's Golfer of the Year and back-to-back WGCA All-America first-team honoree had yet another memorable season. Jacob paced the CCAA and closed the spring as one of five Division II women to average under-par scoring this season with a 71.38. She closed the year with three individual medalist honors as the Cougars earned five team titles in six stroke-play events. The defending NCAA Champion shot a season-best 7-under 137 in her final tournament at the CSUSM Fujikura Invitational. Of her 13 rounds played, Jacob finished with five rounds under 70 and nine rounds of par or better. For her efforts, Jacob was named the CCAA Golfer of the Week six times this season. The Encinitas native was also selected to represent the United States as the lone Division II student-athlete on the 12-member squad in the 2020 Arnold Palmer Cup.