With another academic year in the books, the Farmingdale State College Department of Athletics is proud to announce its 2025-26 year-end award winners, honoring student-athletes and teams for their efforts in the academic year. Additionally, for a record-tying sixth time, Farmingdale State has been awarded the Skyline Conference Presidents Cup, which recognizes the institution for its successes across all of the conference's sports throughout the year.

FSC posted an .8539 percentage in the Presidents Cup calculations, as the Rams captured five Skyline titles (Baseball, Golf, Women's Lacrosse, Men's Tennis, Women's Outdoor Track and Field), and registered four second-place finishes (Men's Basketball, Softball, Women's Tennis, Men's Outdoor Track and Field). Farmingdale State has previously won five Presidents Cups (2010-11, 2012-13, 2013-14, 2016-17, 2023-24), and is now tied with St. Joseph's University-Long Island for the most titles in the award's 19-year history.

"Winning the Presidents Cup, for the sixth time, is a remarkable achievement and a reflection of the collective effort of our student-athletes, coaches, and staff," said Dr. Robert S. Prezant, president of Farmingdale State College. "Their commitment to excellence in both athletics and academics embodies the very best of Farmingdale State. This honor recognizes the hard work, discipline, and teamwork that define our campus community, and we are proud of the example these student-athletes set as scholars, competitors, and leaders."

"Our student-athletes, coaches, and staff continue to amaze on and off the playing fields," added Tom Azzara, FSC's director of athletics. "To be able to excel in the classroom, in the community and on the playing surfaces is something the College is extremely proud of. Without the support from President Dr. Robert Prezant, Executive Vice President and CFO Greg O'Connor and the entire campus community, this prestigious award would not be possible. Let's Go Rams!"

A school earns points toward the Presidents Cup based upon the conference finish in each sport in which it competes. For each sport, the maximum number of points an institution can earn is equal to the number of teams competing in that sport. For sports with regular-season and conference tournament play, a school receives points based upon an average of the regular-season and conference tournament finishes. For sports with only conference championships, the finish in the championship determines the Presidents Cup points. An overall rating is generated for each school which is a percentage of total points earned divided by total points possible for that institution.

COMPLETE SKYLINE CONFERENCE PRESIDENTS CUP RELEASE AND STANDINGS
 

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The All-Farmingdale State Team highlights some of the top student-athlete performances in competition; the George LaRosa Leadership Award is given to one student-athlete annually; and the Academic Achievement Award is given to the team that earned the highest grade-point average this academic year.

All-Farmingdale State Team

As is an annual tradition, the athletics staff has selected its All-Farmingdale State Team. This year's team features 13 student-athletes based on their accomplishments during the past academic year, who boast an array of accolades in their respective sports. Those student-athletes are showcased below, in alphabetical order:

Philip Connolly, Golf (Fr.; Garden City, N.Y.)

GCAA PING All-Region II, Skyline Conference Rookie of the Year and First Team All-Skyline Conference, leading FSC to the Championship and a spot in the NCAA Championship. Registered a 75.17 scoring average over his 23 rounds of competition, including four top-five finishes.

Madison DeMaio, Softball (Jr.; Elmont, N.Y.)
NFCA All-Region 3 Third Team. First Team All-Skyline Conference for second straight year. The 2025 Skyline Conference Pitcher and Rookie of the Year ranked second in the nation with 30 games started. She was ninth for innings pitched, 11th in complete games, 12th for pitching appearances, 15th in shutouts and 23rd in wins. DeMaio went 18-11 in the circle with a 2.79 earned run average, seven shutouts and 110 strikeouts this season.

Connor Dobson, Men's Lacrosse (Jr.; Islip, N.Y.)

Honorable Mention IMLCA All-Region 2, and First Team All-Skyline Conference. Backstopped the nation's 12th-ranked scoring defense, posting an 11-4 record in the Rams' cage with an 8.53 goals against average and .564 save percentage that ranked 19th and 43rd in Division III, respectively.

Olivia Finnegan, Women's Cross Country/Track & Field (Sr.; Massapequa, N.Y.)
Skyline Conference Field Athlete of the Year after scoring a Championship record 68 points, leading FSC to the title. Won the long jump (4.81m), triple jump (10.21m) and high jump (1.45m), while earning points in six other events. Earned 20th place in the 4x400m at All-Atlantic Region Championships.

Richie Heyder, Baseball (Jr.; Holbrook, N.Y.)
D3baseball.com First Team All-American and Region 3 Player of the Year, ABCA Second Team All-American, First Team Academic All-American (first baseball player and second student-athlete to receive first-team praise in school history), ECAC Player of the Year, Skyline Conference Player of the Year. Led all three NCAA divisions in 2026 with a .608 on-base percentage. Ranked second in Division III in OPS (1.505), third in slugging percentage (.897), seventh in batting average (.470), eighth in walks per game (1.05), 17th in doubles per game (0.49), 23rd in total walks (39), and 33rd in doubles (18).

Sean Lawson, Men's Lacrosse (Jr.; Mattituck, N.Y.)
Skyline Conference's Co-Defensive Player of the Year and All-ECAC after causing a team-high 47 turnovers and scooping 72 ground balls at the top of the Rams' defense. A three-time All-Skyline Conference selection in as many seasons at FSC, his 2.76 takeaways per game average is the 17th best mark in Division III. Lawson is Farmingdale State's career leader with 139 caused turnovers through his first three seasons in a green and white uniform. 

Carly Livingston, Women's Lacrosse (Jr.; Farmingdale, N.Y.)
ECAC and Skyline Conference Offensive Player of the Year, IWLCA All-Region for third straight season after a dominant season in which she led the league with 63 goals, 50 assists, 113 points, and 140 shots, while ranking among the national leaders in multiple offensive categories. She finishes the year ranked second in program history in career points, goals and assists. Recorded five or more points in 11 games this season, highlighted by a 15-point outing against Purchase College, which tied the program's single-game record. She also posted seven points in the NCAA Championship First Round game against Wooster, continuing her strong postseason play.

Adonias Mercado, Men's Track and Field (Jr.; Hillsdale, N.Y.)

New Jersey Athletic Conference Indoor Field Athlete of the Year, and Skyline Conference Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year (third consecutive season). Recorded the 26th-best shot put mark nationally during the indoor season (school-record 16.57m), and the NJAC Championship titles in the shot put and weight throw. During the outdoor campaign, he won the Skyline crown in the discus, while posting the No. 37 mark in Division III (50.15m) in the event.

Michael Notias, Men's Basketball (Sr.; Manhasset, N.Y.)
First Team All-Conference, Third Team All-Region, MBWA All-Met. Led FSC this year in scoring (14.9), assists (130), field goals (151) and steals (49). He finished the year ranked 13th in the nation with a 2.95 assist/turnover ratio and will leave Farmingdale State as its ninth all-time leading scorer with 1,154 career points.

Luke O'Grady-Rodgers, Men's Golf (Jr.; Carmel, N.Y.)
GCAA PING All-Region II and First Team All-Skyline Conference, leading FSC to the Championship and a spot in the NCAA Championship. Posted a 75.1 scoring average across 25 rounds this season, the ninth best scoring average for a single season in program history. Earned four top-five finishes in 2025-26.

Shyann Parker, Women's Basketball and Women's Lacrosse (Sr.; Floral Park, N.Y.)

Skyline Conference Women's Basketball Defensive Player of the Year and Second Team All-Skyline Conference. Averaged 8.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 2.2 steals per game on the hardwood, before joining the FSC women's lacrosse team and helping the team to a Skyline Conference title.

Sarah Rende, Volleyball (Jr.; Wantagh, N.Y.)

Skyline Conference Elite 19 Award (second-straight year), First Team All-Skyline Conference and Academic All-District selection. Ranked second in the Skyline with an average of 8.65 assists per set (career-high 744 assists, just six shy of Farmingdale State single-season record), and tallied her 2,000th career assist along the way. Her 2,022 career assists across her first three seasons are just 126 shy of tying the program record, while her 8.02 per-set average is the top mark on the FSC leaderboard.

Alyse Rivera, Women's Soccer (Sr.; Manhattan, N.Y.)

First Team All-Skyline Conference for fourth time in as many seasons. Scored 11 goals on the year, marking the fourth campaign in which she netted double-digit tallies. Ends her career ranked second in school history in goals (44) and points (114), and third in assists (26).

George LaRosa Leadership Award

Farmingdale State College senior golfer Ray Howard (Clayton, N.Y.) has been selected as the 2025-26 winner of the George LaRosa Leadership Award.

This prestigious annual award honors a student-athlete who exemplifies great leadership qualities for their team, both on and off the playing fields. The recipient demonstrates integrity, inspiration and humility, embodying what it truly means to be a student-athlete at Farmingdale State College.

Howard was named a recipient of the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence, the highest honor awarded to a student in the State University of New York system. An Aeronautical Science/Aviation Administration major with a Flight Management concentration, Howard earned President's List honors in every semester at Farmingdale State. A four-year member of the men's golf program, he has also been named to the Skyline Conference Academic Honor Roll in each of his four seasons and is a member of the Epsilon Pi Tau International Honor Society in Technology. Howard is one of FSC's 54 inaugural inductees into Chi Alpha Sigma, a National College Athlete Honor Society.

"Ray has represented the golf team, athletic department and College at a high level during his time on campus," said Ryan Williams, assistant athletic director and head golf coach. "His willingness to lead across his four years at Farmingdale State was unparalleled, and set a fine example for student-athlete leaders for years to come."

A captain of the golf team, Howard demonstrated exceptional leadership both on and off the course. He is a two-time Skyline Conference All-Sportsmanship Team selection and served as President of Farmingdale State's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), where he represented the 300-plus student-athletes and worked with athletic administration and campus leadership to enhance the student-athlete experience.

In addition to his work on campus, Howard is a member of the United States Air Force's 103rd Rescue Squadron. Through SAAC and the golf program, he led and participated in numerous community service initiatives during his time on campus, including visits to local elementary schools, Island Harvest Food Drive, Toys for Tots, and partnerships with the FSC Disability Services Center and TRIO program. He was also involved in the team's new partnership with the First Tee Program of Nassau County.

Howard earned the Sparrow Hawk Award for Outstanding Solo Student Pilot in 2023. He also holds an Instrument Rating, a Commercial Pilot Certificate, and a Secret Security Clearance, and maintains membership in both the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) and the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE).

Academic Achievement Award

The National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division III Philosophy Statement says that the academic performance of its student-athletes should be, "at a minimum, consistent with that of the general student body." As such, it is with great pride that the department announces that 10 FSC teams registered a combined 3.0-plus grade-point average on the 4.0 scale during the 2025-26 academic year. 

The teams with the highest GPA, and sharing the Academic Achievement Award are the golf and women's cross country programs – each of whom recorded a 3.28 GPA. The following is the complete list of those teams who hold a 3.0-plus GPA:

• Men's Basketball
• Men's Cross Country
• Women's Cross Country
• Golf
• Women's Lacrosse
• Women's Soccer
• Softball
• Women's Tennis
• Women's Track and Field
• Volleyball