The Hobart Athletics Department and the Statesmen Athletic Association (SAA) honored the top athletes of 2009-10 at the annual Block H Awards Dinner this evening. Senior cross country runner Ben Flanagan and senior lacrosse goalie Max Silberlicht shared the Francis L. “Babe” Kraus '24 Memorial Award as Hobart's most outstanding senior athletes.

The William C. Stiles '43 Memorial Award for leadership, determination, and character was presented to senior football lineman Brian Monaco and senior soccer defender Matt Geswell, while first-year basketball guard Stefan Thompson was honored with the Abe Solomon Memorial Award as Hobart's Rookie of the Year.

Flanagan has been the top runner at Hobart for the past four years. He was the first Statesman to cross the finish line in all 42 races he completed. Over his career, he notched six first-place finishes, including three this season, and six second-place finishes. Flanagan earned a berth into the national championship meet this fall after finishing 20th out of 264 runners in the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship meet. In the national meet, he finished 132nd in the extremely competitive 276-runner field, posting an 8-kilometer time of 26 minutes, 57.3 seconds. Flanagan is just the fourth Statesman, and first since Greg Stowell '00 finished 45th in 1999, to compete in the NCAA National Championship meet.

Flanagan finished in the top-10 21 times in his career, exactly half of the races he ran in. He improved his times every year, and recorded a personal-best 8k time of 25:29 in the Cross Country Only Championship this season.

A three-year starter and 2010 Inside Lacrosse preseason honorable mention All-American, Silberlicht holds the Hobart Division I career record for wins (18), and currently boasts the lowest career GAA (9.23). He also ranks second in career saves (541) and save percentage (.577). Silberlicht broke the school's Division I season record for GAA in 2008 (8.05) and in 2009 (.631). His .631 save percentage last season in second on the single season list, as are his seven wins in 2008 and 2009.

This spring, Silberlicht became just the third Statesmen goalie since 1995 to record 20 or more saves in a game; he collected a career-high 23 stops vs. Syracuse on March 23. Silberlicht enters his final collegiate game (at Bryant on May  6) 12th in the nation in save percentage (.568). He has 166 saves this season, three behind Mike Borsz '03 (169 in 2002) for the fifth spot on Hobart's single season list and just eight stops behind his own 2009 total.

Monaco earned ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Football first team honors twice, becoming the first Hobart or William Smith student-athlete to do so. The biology major is a three-time ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District and Liberty League All-Academic selection as well. In the classroom, Monaco is a Dean's List student, a Druid (Hobart's senior class honor society), and a member of the Chimera (junior class) and Orange Key (sophomore class) honor societies. Earlier this season, the National Football Foundation named him one of the 154 semifinalists for the 2009 William V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes exceptional academic accomplishment, outstanding football ability, and strong leadership and citizenship.

Active in the campus community, Monaco is a biology teaching fellow and a member of the Health Professions Club. He has volunteered at Sisters of Charity Hospital Surgery Center and with the Geneva Boxing Club, and has also served as a member of Hobart's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

On the gridiron, Monaco was a 6-foot-2, 290-pound tackle. One of two captains for this year's squad, he was a three-year starter and a three-time All-Liberty League selection. This fall, Monaco was a leader on the line that helped the Statesmen lead the Liberty League in third down conversion (44.9%), rank second in fewest sacks allowed (16) and in fourth down conversion (56%), and third in rushing (159.0 yds/g).

A defender, Geswell anchored a unit that allowed just five goals against non-conference opponents and posted nine shutouts this season. Over the past four years, he has been a mainstay on the Hobart defense, playing in 76 of a possible 81 matches, starting 73. Geswell guided the Statesmen to four straight NCAA Tournament appearances and a 57-13-11 record. For his career, he recorded a game-winning goal and seven assists.

Geswell was named to the 2009 ESPN The Magazine Men's Soccer Academic All-District Second Team. A biology major, Geswell has earned numerous academic accolades; he's a six-time Dean's List honoree, a three-time Liberty League All-Academic pick, two-time Hobart Scholar, 2009 Hale Scholar, and 2006 Trustee Scholar.

Thompson was named Rookie of the Year by three organizations; he garnered top first-year honors from the Liberty League, D3hoops.com East Region, and ECAC Upstate. Also an All-Liberty League second team selection, Thompson finished the season fourth in the conference in scoring (15.0 ppg), field goal percentage (.532), and free throw percentage (.842), fifth in assists (3.29 apg), and ninth in steals (1.36 spg).

A point guard, Thompson played in all 28 games for the Statesmen, starting 27. He netted 420 points on the year, shattering the previous standard for points in a season by a Hobart first-year by 119. Thompson registered two double-doubles on the year, posting 10 points and 12 assists in a win over Hamilton and 22 points with 10 helpers vs. St. Lawrence. He recorded double-digits in the scoring column 22 times, including a season-high 29 points in a double-overtime victory over Buffalo State. Thompson was named the Liberty League's Rookie of the Week 10 times and Guard of the Week once.

The Joseph N. Abraham Memorial Training Award went to senior hockey defenseman Jordan Zitoun, for participating throughout the season while persevering through an injury. Zitoun worked his way back from a lingering injury to play in the final six games of the season. He helped Hobart to a 4-1-1 mark in those games, tallying two goals and four assists. He wrapped up his three-year career as a Statesman with six goals and 19 assists in 50 contests.

The Joe Abraham Prize for outstanding service to the athletic programs at Hobart went to senior student athletic trainer Jacob MacDonald. In addition to his commitment to the Colleges' sports medicine staff, he is a member of the HWS Emergency Medical team and a leader in the Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity.

Coordinator of Sports Medicine Doug Reeland received the Coach Bill Maxwell Memorial Award for his longtime commitment to the Colleges. Since 1978, he has treated the injured student-athletes of Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

Lacrosse attackman Kevin Curtin was presented with the Dorinne Maxwell Memorial Citizenship Prize. The senior captain leads Hobart with 19 goals and 33 points this season. Off the field, the economics major is a member of the Druid and Chimera honor societies. Curtin is a five-time Dean's List member, four-time Hobart Dean's Scholar, and a three-time ECAC All-Academic team member. 

Curtin also engages in a variety of community service activities. In 2006, he helped rebuild houses in New Orleans over spring break, and in the fall of 2008 Curtin ran a lacrosse clinic at a local YMCA. More recently, he participated in HWS' Penguin Plunge, a fundraiser for a local breast cancer support group. Curtin also volunteers annually with the Salvation Army Red Kettle Drive, and the Geneva Rotary Club's Santa Train.

Thomas Patchett '88 and Dr. Arthur Patchett shared the William J. Napier '57 Memorial Award for their loyalty and service to Hobart Athletics. The Patchetts have been dedicated members of the SAA and recently, Tom endowed The Coach Ron Fleury Cross Country Award, which was presented for the first time tonight.

Sponsored by the SAA—the team behind Hobart's teams—the department's coaching staff also presented individual awards in each of the College's 11 varsity sports, more than 50 in all.