The University of Rochester Department of Athletics and Recreation held its annual awards banquet earlier this week in the Frederick Douglass Ball Room, with seven departmental awards being presented to six deserving individuals and one varsity athletic team.
 
Additionally at the ceremony, senior student-athletes who earned four varsity letters throughout their entire athletic careers at the University were given Spirit R blankets, honoring their commitment to Rochester athletics over the past four years.
 
The annual awards banquet serves as a celebration of all Rochester varsity student-athletes and their accomplishments both on and off the field of play. The evening festivities also includes a dinner provided by the support of the Friends of Rochester Athletics annual fund, season recaps of all 23 varsity teams and the presentations to the seniors and department award winners.
 
Rochester's seven department awards are the Louis Alexander Alumni Award, Merle Spurrier Award, John Vitone Sportsmanship Award, Sylvia Fabricant Sportsmanship Award, Peter DiPasquale Male Scholar-Athlete Award, Terrence Gurnett Female Scholar Athlete Award and the Peyton Family Team Academic Award.
 
These awards date back at Rochester to as far back as the 1950's, with the newest award, the Peyton Family Team Academic Award, starting up last year in 2024.
 
Rochester's award recipients for 2024-25 were:
Louis Alexander Alumni Award: Cole Goodman, men's track & field
Merle Spurrier Award: Megan Bell, women's track & field
John A. Vitone Sportsmanship Award: Trey Johnson, football
Sylvia Fabricant Sportsmanship Award: Savannah Nowak, softball
Peter DiPasquale Male Scholar-Athlete Award: Krish Vennam, men's tennis
Terrence L. Gurnett Female Scholar-Athlete Award: Alexia Nelms, volleyball
Peyton Family Team Academic Award: Women's cross country
 
Click on each of the individual award links for a more in-depth story on the seven winners.