CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – University of Illinois Director of Athletics Josh Whitman announced on Tuesday the hiring of Josh Nilson as head women’s gymnastics coach. Nilson has agreed to a five-year contract, pending approval by the UI Board of Trustees at its July meeting.

Nilson takes over the reins after serving as Illini associate head coach the past two seasons, helping lead the program to back-to-back NCAA Regional Round 2 appearances while having four gymnasts compile All-Big Ten honors. 

“For the last two years, Josh Nilson has been a highly influential presence in our gym, and he received an outpouring of support throughout this process from team members, recruits, and others across the national gymnastics community,” Whitman said. “From our first conversation, Josh’s enthusiasm for our program and bold vision for its future were immediately apparent. I want to thank Josh, his wife, Amanda, and their family for trusting us and believing in the University of Illinois.”

“First and foremost, I want to thank Athletics Director Josh Whitman, Chief Sports Officer and Senior Woman Administrator Sara Burton, and Senior Associate Athletics Director Cassie Arner for their trust in me and belief in my vision for this program,” Nilson said. “I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to lead the Fighting Illini Women’s Gymnastics team.

“My family and I have fallen in love with this community, and we proudly bleed orange and blue. This program has all the tools to become a national contender and dominant force in the Big Ten. I consider this both a tremendous responsibility and a true honor. I’m energized, motivated, and ready to get to work.”

Nilson arrived in Champaign in May 2023 after serving five years as head women’s gymnastics coach at Temple University. While at Temple, Nilson led the Owls to three straight conference titles – the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) championship in 2019 and 2020 and the East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) championship in 2021. The lone coach in Temple history to win a conference title in women’s gymnastics, Nilson was named ECAC coach of the year in both 2019 and 2020.

On the heels of its third consecutive league title, and first as a member of the EAGL, Temple qualified for NCAA Regionals in 2021 for the first time in 29 years, achieving its highest ranking in program history at No. 30. For his efforts, Nilson was named 2021 Northeast Region Coach of the Year by the Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association. 

Prior to his first head coaching stint at Temple, Nilson spent the 2017-18 season as assistant coach at the United States Air Force Academy, helping guide the Falcons to their highest USA Gymnastics Collegiate National finish in seven years. That followed a 2016-17 season at Penn State, where Nilson began as assistant coach before serving as co-interim head coach in the final months of the season. 

He returned to his alma mater in 2013 to begin a three-year term as assistant coach at Utah State. During that time, the Aggies made three consecutive NCAA Regional appearances, and Nilson was recognized as the two-time North Central Region Assistant Coach of the Year in 2014 and 2015.

Nilson spent two seasons from 2011-13 as an assistant coach at Texas Woman’s University, where he was named the 2012 USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Assistant of the Year and Midwest Independent Conference Assistant Coach of the Year.

During his time as an undergraduate at Utah State, Nilson was a student coach for women’s gymnastics from 2005-08. He then spent three years as the second assistant coach before heading to Texas.

A native of Cache Valley, Utah, Nilson graduated from Utah State in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in law and constitutional studies with a minor in family finance. He and his wife, Amanda, have five sons: Tristan, Ezekiel, Remington, Liam, and Asher.

BABSON PARK, Mass.—Babson College senior Olivia Soffer (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) added her awards haul on Monday when she was selected as the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division III Northeast Region Senior Player of the Year. 

The most accomplished player in program history, Soffer is 26-4 on the year in singles play and boasts a 25-2 record in doubles. She has won 16 consecutive matches in both singles and doubles and earned her fourth consecutive New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Player of the Year honor earlier this month. 

A three-time ITA All-American in singles and two-time All-America selection in doubles, Soffer is the Beavers’ all-time leader in singles (98), doubles (93) and combined victories (191). She also holds the program’s single-season record for singles wins with 31 back in 2022-23 and paired with junior Matia Cristiani (San Salvador, El Salvador) to go 32-2 on the way to capturing an NCAA national championship in doubles last May. 

Soffer became Babson’s first NCAA Singles Championship qualifier and All-America selection as a rookie during 2021-22 before putting together a historic 2022-23 campaign. She captured the program’s first ITA New England Championships singles crown and advanced to the ITA Cup where she reached the semifinals in singles and finished as the runner-up in doubles alongside Cristiani. 

That spring, Soffer helped lead the Beavers to their first NCAA Tournament regional final before finishing as the runner-up in both the singles and doubles brackets at the individual championships. 

Soffer made more history last season by pairing with Cristiani to earn the program’s first doubles title at the 2023 ITA New England Championships in the fall, which was followed by the duo capturing Babson’s first women’s national championship last May with a three-set victory over Nikolina Batoshvili and Alisha Chulani of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in the NCAA doubles final. 

Soffer, who is currently third in the ITA Division III singles ranking and third alongside Cristiani in doubles, is set to compete in both the NCAA singles and doubles championships beginning Saturday in Claremont, Calif.

The Middlebury Athletics Department recognized 12 Panthers during the annual Senior Athletic Department Awards ceremony on Tuesday afternoon in Dana Auditorium. Middlebury College Interim President Stephen B. Snyder, Director of Athletics Erin Quinn ’86 and Assistant Athletic Director Katharine DeLorenzo gave remarks at the event. Leah Poorman of the women’s basketball team and Marco Motroni of the football and men’s track and field teams were chosen as the student speakers.

The following were the 2025 award winners:

A. Bayard Russ ’66 Memorial Athletic Award

• Cece Ziegler (Women’s Ice Hockey, Softball)

  • A two-sport athlete, Ziegler excelled in women’s ice hockey and softball throughout her time at Middlebury.
  • She was a part of the 2022 NCAA Championship team in women’s ice hockey and was a member of two NESCAC Championship teams and four NCAA Tournament squads. 
  • Ziegler earned All-NESCAC Second Team honors and was tabbed a New England Hockey Writers Association (NEHWA) All-Star this winter.  
  • In the classroom, she was a seven-time All-NESCAC Academic and both a two-time Krampade/AHCA All-American Scholar and Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete.

• Dave Filias (Football, Men’s Track & Field)

  • Filias is a four-year member of the football and men’s track and field teams.
  • On the gridiron, Filias was a two-time All-NESCAC and D3football.com All-Region honoree. He was lauded as the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Week three times during his career.
  • Filias was a member of the 2023 squad that claimed the NESCAC Championship.
  • During the spring, the Panther is a three-time NESCAC Champion and a three-time Division III New England Champion in the hammer throw. The school-record holder in the discipline, he has claimed a trio of spots in the NCAA Outdoor Championships, finishing 15th and 13th and garnering All-American laurels last spring. 
  • Filias will compete in the national event later this week.

• Bradshaw Underhill (Alpine Skiing, Men’s Golf)

  • Underhill was a three-year captain of the alpine skiing program.
  • On the mountain, he was a two-time All-American and four-year NCAA Qualifier.
  • Last winter, he finished in fourth place during the giant slalom (GS) and sixth in the slalom at the NCAA Championships. 
  • Underhill was selected as the EISA Slalom Bib Leader and EISA GS Bib Leader in 2025. 
  • He was a three-time EISA All-East honoree and the EISA Rookie of the Year. He secured 13 podium finishes, including 10 last winter with four event wins (four GS and three slalom). Underhill tallied his first All-NESCAC honor in golf. He posted three top-20 efforts this year.
  • The Panther is a five-time All-NESCAC selection for his academic efforts and a USCSCA All-Academic honoree. 

Deborah Parton ’76 Memorial Award

• Alexa Mustafaj (Women’s Basketball)

  • Mustafaj rewrote the program record books, becoming the all-time leader in points (2,180), field goals (815) and free throws made (397). 
  • Mustafaj became the first NESCAC women’s basketball player to eclipse 2,000 points and sits among the top-five places across both genders in career points. 
  • The Panther sits second in career scoring average (22.5) and free-throw percentage (79.2), while scoring the third (589 in 2024), fourth (563 in 2023) and fifth-most (552 in 2025) points in a season.
  • A captain this winter, she earned her fourth All-NESCAC honor with a spot on the first team. Mustafaj garnered recognition from the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) with an Honorable Mention All-American nod.
  • She was named a New England Women’s Basketball Association (NEWBA) All-Region First Team honoree and tabbed to the D3hoops.com All-Region squad for the fourth time.
  • Mustafaj was named the first College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America selection in the program’s history and a CSC Academic All-District honoree for the third-consecutive season.

Hazeltine-Klevenow Memorial Trophy

• Neel Epstein (Men’s Tennis)

  • Epstein is a two-year captain for the men’s tennis team.
  • He was selected as an Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-American in doubles last year.
  • As a part of a duo, he posted 75 career triumphs.
  • The Panther played primarily at #3 singles throughout this spring, amassing a 13-6 record and concluding his career with 77 victories.
  • He garnered CSC Academic All-District accolades in each of the last two years and was a CSC Third Team Academic All-America honoree last spring.
  • Epstein is a three-time ITA Scholar-Athlete and has been tabbed NESCAC All-Academic in three-consecutive years.

• Thomas Perry (Football)

  • Perry was invited to a pair of National Football League (NFL) Rookie Minicamps as an offensive lineman. 
  • He earned All-American honors from the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) with first-team accolades and D3football.com garnering a fourth-team nod. Perry was named to the All-NESCAC First Team Offense for the third-straight campaign.
  • The senior became the first player in program history to be invited and participate in the East-West Shrine Bowl and was named to the inaugural Walter Camp Division III All-America Team.
  • Perry garnered his second-consecutive CSC Academic All-America First Team national honor. The senior was named a NESCAC All-Academic honoree in each of the last three campaigns.

• Bea Parr (Women’s Cross Country, Women’s Track & Field)

  • Parr served as a captain this year for the women’s cross country and women’s track and field programs.
  • She has earned USTFCCCA All-Region laurels three times in cross country and was an Indoor Division III All-New England award winner in the 3,000 meters.
  • During the cross country seasons, she raced to a trio of All-NESCAC finishes, highlighted by a pair of first-team all-conference efforts.
  • Parr is a six-time NESCAC All-Academic selection and a USTFCCCA Scholar Athlete.

• Hope Shue (Women’s Lacrosse)

  • Shue is a captain this spring for the women’s lacrosse team.
  • One of the most decorated players in program history, the senior was the 2024 IWLCA National Player and Attacker of the Year. She is a four-time IWLCA All-American, IWLCA All-Region and All-NESCAC recipient with three first-team all-league nods. 
  • She became the first person to earn NESCAC Offensive Player of the Year twice.  
  • The senior paces the conference in points with 107, a single-season program record she established in the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinal. Shue also became the program’s record holder this spring in career points and goals.
  • The attacker is a two-time CSC Academic All-America At-Large recipient, been the winner of the Elite 90 Award twice and earned NESCAC All-Academic praises three times.

John P. Stabile ’40 Memorial Trophy

• Kyle McCausland (Baseball)

  • McCausland sprinkled his name throughout the program’s records both in a single season and a career. He became the second player in conference history to earn NESCAC Player of the Year praise twice in their career after winning the award in 2023. The senior tallied his third consecutive All-NESCAC First Team honor. 
  • He ranked first this spring among league peers in total bases (108), runs batted in (RBI) (48) and home runs (13). The Panther also led the team with 52 hits and 30 walks.
  • McCausland became the all-time leader in career hits with 202 and has top marks in runs scored (156) and doubles (45). The outfielder is also the program’s home run leader, blasting 41 in a Panther uniform.
  • He was tabbed just the program’s second All-American honoree with a third-team nod, while he is a three-time ABCA First Team All-Region selection.
  • In the classroom, McCausland has twice been recognized as a CSC Academic All-America and three-time All-NESCAC Academic recipient, respectively.  

Mike Wilson ’57 Trophy

• Carolyn Kelley (Women’s Soccer)

  • Over her career, Kelley appeared in 24 games in front of the Panther goal with 19 starts.
  • The netminder owned a 1.03 career goals against average (GAA), 81 saves, an 8-6-7 record and five shutouts.
  • She tallied a 4-1-4 mark last fall with eight starts in 11 matches played and ranked third in the conference with a 0.59 GAA to go alongside a trio of clean sheets. 
  • The goalie earned United Soccer Coaches Second-Team All-New England Region praise.
  • Kelley is a four-time NESCAC All-Academic honoree and a CSC Academic All-District award winner last fall. 

• Jake Oblak (Men’s Ice Hockey)

  • Oblak concluded his career serving as an assistant captain last winter for Middlebury.
  • He skated in 68 games in the navy and white uniform with six goals and five assists, including three tallies and two helpers in 26 contests as a senior.
  • The forward tallied the game-winning goal during a 2-0 triumph over in-state foe Norwich.  
  • Oblak earned NESCAC All-Academic accolades twice, garnered a Krampade/American Hockey Coaches Association All-American Scholar award and was named to the NESCAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Murphy Roberts ’17 Memorial Award

• Isaiah Izzo Lizardi (Football, Men’s Track & Field)

  • Lizardi is a four-year member of the football and track and field teams.
  • On the football field, the running back appeared in 15 career games. He carried the ball 58 times for 165 yards and scored his first rushing touchdown last fall against Hamilton.
  • Lizardi was a member of the NESCAC Championship team during his junior year and a contributor on the track and field team that claimed the league title this spring.
  • He ran a leg of the USTFCCCA All-Region 4×400 Relay quartet and earned outdoor All-NESCAC praises.
  • Lizardi has been selected to the All-NESCAC Sportsmanship teams in football and track and field.
  • He is a four-time NESCAC All-Academic recipient, garnering the praise twice in each sport.

 A full description of each award, including previous winners, can be found here.

Alex Chiasson, a member of the Washington Capitals’ 2018 Stanley Cup championship team, achieved another incredible milestone this past weekend.

The former NHL forward graduated from college, and he did so 15 years after first attending Boston University. The Terrier hockey team account posted a photo of a smiling Chiasson in his cap and gown, posing with his family.

“Congrats to Stanley Cup champion Alex Chiasson on graduating this weekend!,” the X account wrote.

Chiasson first attended BU as a freshman in the fall of 2009 and was a member of their hockey team. Enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences, Chiasson immediately showed that he was a star player, scoring two goals in his NCAA debut on October 16 against Massachusetts. The six-foot-three winger played 35 games in his freshman season, notching seven goals and 12 assists. Over the summer, he was selected by the Dallas Stars in the second round 2009 NHL Draft, 38th overall.

The St. Augustin, Quebec native would remain at Boston University through his junior season before signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Stars on March 26, 2012. The contract officially began his professional career in hockey.

Chiasson would play parts of 11 seasons in the NHL from 2012 through 2023, suiting up for seven different teams. Chiasson notched 233 points (120g, 113a) in 651 career NHL games with the Dallas Stars, Calgary Flames, Ottawa Senators, Washington Capitals, Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks, and Detroit Red Wings. He’d win his first and only championship with the Capitals as a reserve and checking line forward in 2018.

Chiasson officially announced his retirement in January of this past year, and it appears he remained busy after that. Focusing on accumulating the final college credits he needed to graduate, Chiasson continued his schooling at Boston University Metropolitan College, which offers “offers flexible graduate and undergraduate programs that help you transform your future.”

Five months later, he walked with his fellow graduates at age 34.

From everyone at RMNB, congratulations Chaser on your latest accomplishment.