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.

Richard Henry Kustin, a loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, passed away peacefully in his home on May 14, 2025, at the age of 101. Richard (Dick) was born on January 3, 1924, in Philadelphia, later attending Central High School. After high school, Dick obtained a degree in Poultry Husbandry from The National Farm School and then worked a number of years on Cape Cod raising turkeys. He then earned an Electrical Engineering degree from the Pennsylvania State University. After graduating from Penn State, Dick joined Henkels & McCoy, a large utility construction company. Initially, he was a line crew foreman but then advanced to a position in the purchasing department. Eventually he became the purchasing director and an officer of the company. His career at Henkels & McCoy spanned over 40 years. It was just after Dick started working at Henkels & McCoy that he met Helen Clay, the love of his life and wife of nearly 60 years, on a blind date. Dick and Helen shared a loving, memorable life together enjoying their family, camping, traveling, gardening and Penn State sports.

Dick was a natural born leader and very gregarious. When he met someone new, he would remember their name. He always greeted everyone and would describe people as “a good friend of mine.” He had strong opinions on the right way to do something and was always available to help someone in time of need. Dick was a scoutmaster and active in boy scouts for most of his life. One of Dick’s proudest moments with scouts was when he met President Truman & General Eisenhower at the 1950 National Jamboree at Valley Forge. 

Dick retired to State College and this is when he really started to get busy. He was an avid Penn State sports fan, known by some of his neighbors as Mr. Penn State. Football and women’s volleyball were his favorites but at one time he also had season tickets for women’s basketball and softball, as well as men’s ice hockey, volleyball and basketball. He traveled abroad as a chaperone for the women’s volleyball and rugby teams. For 18 years, Dick led the Tailback Club, a club for fans of Penn State athletic programs. He was deeply involved with many groups and organizations in and around Penn State such as the Center County Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association, the 55 Club at Good Shepherd Church, the Triad organization, the Boal Barn Theatre and various committees at The Village of Penn State, just to name a few. In 2007, the Penn State Alumni Association awarded Dick the Philip Philip Mitchell Alumni Service Award recognizing his significant service contributions on behalf of the University.

Dick was preceded in death by his wife, Helen Clay Kustin. He is survived by his 7 children, Andrew Kustin (Kathy), Elizabeth “Betsy” Kustin (Caryle), Catherine “Cathy” Ganter (Ralph), David Kustin (Julie), Esther Cordell (Jim), Francine Vido (Joe) and Genevieve Grube; his 20 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

We would like to thank the staff and everyone at The Village of Penn State for their ongoing loving care and kindness towards Dad.

Rest in peace, Dad, you are now with Mom.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Good Shepherd Church, 867 Grays Woods Blvd, Port Matilda, PA 16870. 

A Celebration of Life Mass will begin at 11:00am on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at Good Shepherd Church with a Visitation held prior to mass from 9:30am – 10:45am. Private inurnment will take place at Centre County Memorial Park.

Arrangements are entrusted to Haky/Georgiana Centre County Funeral Home. An online guestbook may be signed and condolences left for the family at www.hakygeorgianafh.com.

For the second year in a row, The Sun’s Female Athlete of the Year is a member of the women’s hockey team. Last year’s winner — Izzy Daniel ’24 — was an incredible individual talent and a bridge between the pre-pandemic success and the post-pandemic rebuild of the program. Like Daniel, Rory Guilday ’25 was instrumental in rebuilding Cornell’s women’s hockey program to a place of excellence. Unlike Daniel, Guilday remained long enough to see the Red return to college hockey’s promised land: the Frozen Four.  

For Cornell, the 2024-2025 season was a historic one. The team won its fifth ECAC title, made its fifth Frozen Four appearance, and set a women’s hockey attendance record at Lynah Rink. 

“[At the ECAC] championship we had a spectacular crowd, and I remember having chills the entire time, from when we first stepped on ice through the national anthem when everyone yelled ‘Red,’” Guilday said. “I think honestly, maybe I got a little teary eyed.”  

The Red’s impressive season came five years after the cancellation of the 2020 National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament while the squad was slated as the top seed and four years after the Ivy League missed the entirety of the 2020-2021 season. There may be no player who better represents the post-pandemic resurgence of the women’s hockey program at Cornell than Guilday.

 When Guilday first stepped foot on campus, little remained of the impressive 2019-2020 team. 

“It was a really, really young, inexperienced team because of the loss of the [COVID-19] year and … I think the team we had at that point there was only a few girls — a handful — who had actually played in college games before that season,” Guilday said. “We had a big freshman class, I think 11 or 12 of us … It was chaos.”

Making matters worse, the 2022 Winter Olympics were held during Guilday’s freshman year, meaning head coach Doug Derraugh ’91 was missing for stretches of the season while coaching for Team Canada. Despite Cornell’s mediocre record (14-14-2, 12-8-2 ECAC), what Guilday dubbed a “rebuilding year” triumphed in setting up the team for future success. 

“We all kind of took on the learning curve together, and did what we could do for that year and we all learned a lot,” said Guilday. “It took trial and error, and rebuilding this team back up … it was for the people in that room and for no one else. We wanted to get better, and we did each year. I think that’s because of the people we had in the locker room and our amazing coaches that guided us in the right direction, and we eventually made it.”

Make it they did. After finishing sixth in the ECAC during the 2021-2022 regular season, Guilday and the Red finished fifth, then fourth, in the following two years. During these three seasons Guilday was excellent, racking up 43 points and twice finishing second on the team in blocks. While her sophomore campaign was shortened due to injury, Guilday played in 29 and 32 games her freshman and junior seasons respectively, earning All-Ivy honors in both years.    

Then came the 2024-2025 season.

It’s no coincidence that what makes Guilday such a special player is almost identical to what propelled this year’s team to greatness: gritty lockdown defense, timely scoring and a close bond. 

For both Guilday and Cornell, the defense comes first. This summer, Guilday will be a top pick in the Professional Women’s Hockey League draft because of her defense prowess. At 5’ 11’’, the Minnesota native terrorizes forwards with her physical defensive playstyle, while also being able to keep her head up to close down passing and shooting lanes. 

“She sees the game really well, and she’s a big strong girl,” said senior defender Ashley Messier. “She’s tall, powerful …. She uses her size to her advantage, she’s just so consistently a shutdown defender.”

Unsurprisingly, Guilday fits in well with Derraugh’s defense-oriented coaching style, and both she and her team dominated on that side of the ice her senior year.   

“We know how good each of our players are, and we just had confidence in [the] fact [that] we had each other’s back, and we prided ourselves on defense this year as a whole,” Guilday said. “That was our coach’s goal, and our goal as a team, was to be the best team defensively, and I feel like we showed up and showed out for that.”

“Showed up and showed out” might be an understatement. In Guilday’s final season, the Red allowed the second fewest goals in the NCAA, tallied the fourth-most shutouts (10) and earned the fifth-best penalty kill percentage. Guilday was excellent on an individual level as well, being named to the All-Ivy first team and All-ECAC third team. 

For both Guilday and Cornell, defensive skill didn’t come at the cost of offense. Despite her reputation as a shutdown defender, oftentimes the first thing Guilday’s teammates want to talk about is her shot. 

“She can shoot better than any female hockey player I’ve ever seen,” Messier said.

“She has an absolute rocket of a shot,” said senior forward Gabbie Rud.

Sophomore goaltender Annelies Bergmann dubbed Guilday’s slapshot the “hardest shot in the ECAC.”

In fact, the power play unit had an entire play built around the biblical power of her shot.

“One of our plays, we called it the ‘Red Sea’ because you just gave her the puck and she would just wind up and everyone would get out of the way because her shot’s so hard,” Rud said.

While Guilday’s senior season offensive stats don’t necessarily jump off the page at five goals and four assists, her timing proved crucial for Cornell. On a team whose offense motto could be summed up as “any player on any night,” Guilday fit right in, with all five of her goals coming against the four ECAC teams that spent the season battling Cornell atop the conference standings. Her biggest game of the season came on January 10th on the road against then-No. 5 Colgate, when she scored both goals in a 2-1 win to snap a seven-game road losing streak against the Raiders.

But beyond results on the rink, what made this season so special for Guilday and her teammates was the team’s bond.

“There are so many incredible people here who want what’s best for you and want to help you grow and see you thrive … I’m going to miss these people so, so, so much,” Guilday said. “They mean the world to me, and I will always be grateful to them.” 

While leaving Cornell will be bittersweet for Guilday, her future is bright. After graduating from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences with a degree in psychology, Guilday is nearly certain to be picked in this summer’s PWHL draft and join the six Cornellians already playing in the league. 

“I’m no stranger to hard work here at Cornell, and I think that’s going to help me a lot in the PWHL,” Guilday said. “It’s a fast, physical game there and it’s obviously professional hockey with the best players in the world, and I think that I’m well prepared because of what coach [Derraugh] has taught me and what we’ve been through as a team.” 

“She’s gonna excel at the next level in the PWHL,” Rud said. “I can’t wait to watch her, especially with the league being allowed to hit. She’s going to be so good.” 

Speaking of playing with the best players in the world, after the draft the next question is whether Guilday will be named to Team USA’s roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics. The selection would not come as a shock since Guilday has already totalled 38 games and nine points for the US National Team, helping her country win three Women’s World Championship medals and a Six Nations Tournament title. 

“It’s always an incredible honor,” Guilday said when asked about representing the US on the ice. “It’s something that you are grateful for every time you pull on that jersey and every time you’re involved with that group.”

Regardless of what comes next, Guilday’s impact at Cornell is undeniable. Along with her 10 fellow seniors, Guilday helped lead Cornell from a .500 team to competing for National Championships.

“I’m maybe a little biased because she’s one of my best friends, but she is the best human being I know. She’s such a good, well rounded person,” Rud said. “Obviously a very good teammate, friend, person. She excels not only on the ice but off the ice, as well in the classroom. I have nothing but good things to say about her.” 

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