April 30, 2012

DEKALB, Ill.- Northern Illinois Athletics' third annual awards banquet "The Victors" is set for Thursday, May 3, at 7:15 p.m. CT in DeKalb's historic Egyptian Theatre. The red-carpet event is open to the public and fans can even choose the Top Performance of the Year as the Huskies celebrate their academic and athletic achievements over the past year.

An all-sports, ESPY-style show, "The Victors" will feature live performances, musical numbers and awards presentations by several NIU student-athletes and staff. Overall, 24 awards will be given out and all of NIU's 2011-12 seniors in every sport will be recognized. Awards will honor NIU's top male and female newcomer, scholar-athlete and community service participant, as well as the top male and female teams in terms of both athletic and academic accomplishment. The NIU Alumni Association will present the Male and Female Athlete of the Year awards. The Huskies will also feature awards for the top unsung hero, comeback of the year and non-scholarship student-athlete. Results from the 2011 spring, 2011 fall and 2011-12 winter sports were considered in the nominations and selection of winners.

Northern Illinois coaches nominated student-athletes for the awards and that list was narrowed down to four finalists in each category by members of the Huskie Athletics executive staff. The winners for every award except the Top Performance of the Year will be selected by the Northern Illinois Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC), which is made up of representatives from every NIU intercollegiate athletics team.

Top Performance of the Year is solely determined by fan vote, which will come to a close at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 2. Video of each performance can be seen on this page and the NIU Athletics Facebook page and fans can vote on either page. The four finalists are football's Tommylee Lewis for his two kick-off touchdown returns against Toledo; gymnastics' Tanya Rachan for her 9.9 floor routine at the State of Illinois Classic; men's soccer's Sean Totsch for his game-winning goal in the Mid-American Conference Championship win over Western Michigan; and women's basketball's Kim Davisfor her game-winning put-back in the MAC Tournament second round against Akron.

Tickets are available for $20 through the Egyptian Theatre Box Office(815-758-1225), located at 135 North Second Street. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased the day of the event.

The following is a list of the 2012 finalists:

Newcomer of the Year (M)
Isaac Kannah
Tommylee Lewis
Abdel Nader
Jeff Zimmerman

Newcomer of the Year (F)
Amanda Corral
Morgan Johnson
Lauren Noonan
Amber Walker

Scholar Athlete of the Year (M)
Brad Dieckhaus
Kyle Glancy
Chandler Harnish
Finn Jor

Scholar Athlete of the Year (F)
Kristin Hoffman
Allison McGlaughlin
Carly Norton
Jenner Sio

Unsung Hero of the Year
DeMarcus Grady
Shaakira Haywood
Justine Schepler
Pat Sloan

Community Service Award (M)
Zach Anderson
Paul Hammerschmidt
Mike Mascitti
Troy White

Community Service Award (F)
Sam Grams
Shelby Miller
Nici Newquist
Allie Parthie

Huskie Heart Award
Brad Dieckhaus
Megan Melendez
Jenna Thorp
Carissa Burdi

Coach of the Year (M. Team)
Dave Doeren
Eric Luzzi

Coach of the Year (F. Team)
Kathi Bennett
Ray Gooden
Sam Morreale
Connie Teaberry

Huskie Pride Award
Katie Janssen
Ashley Major
Pat McAvoy
Rocco Taglia

Performance of the Year
Kim Davis
Tommylee Lewis
Sean Totsch
Tanya Rachan

Athlete of the Year (M)
Maksym Bartiuk
Chandler Harnish
Tony Manville
Francis Otira

Athlete of the Year (F)
Megan Gregory
Kristin Hoffman
Chanel Kellyman
Tanya Rachan

Academic Team of the Year (M)
Baseball
Football
Men's Golf
Men's Tennis

Academic Team of the Year (F)
Women's Golf
Gymnastics
Women's Tennis
Volleyball

Team of the Year (M)
Football
Men's Soccer

Team of the Year (F)
Volleyball

Community Service Team of the Year (M)
Baseball
Football
Men's Soccer
Wrestling

Community Service Team of the Year (F)
Women's Soccer
Softball
Track & Field
Volleyball

The Victors Cup Winner (M)
Baseball
Football
Men's Soccer
Wrestling

The Victors Cup Winner (F)
Women's Soccer
Softball
Track
Volleyball

Mr. Victor E. Huskie
Antone Christian
Nabal Jefferson
Finn Jor
Jared Torrence

Ms. Victor E. Huskie
Sara McLaughlin
Tanya Rachan
Courtney Shelton
Jenner Sio