The Baruch College Bearcats had a thrilling season in several sports, winning seven CUNY Athletic Conference championships and receiving a CUNYAC Commissioner’s Cup. The Bearcats came out on top in soccer, men’s basketball, men’s swimming, baseball, men’s volleyball and both men’s and women’s tennis.

For the first time since 2015, Baruch was presented with the 2021-22 CUNYAC Commissioner’s Cup at the 35th Annual Michael Steuerman Scholar Athlete Awards Dinner on May 23. The Commissioner’s Cup recognizes the strongest athletic program in the CUNYAC based on a scoring system that rewards a school for success during both regular season and championship competitions. The Bearcats totaled 145 points in the scoring system.

Women’s tennis finished with a record of 12-4 and was named CUNYAC tournament and regular season champions. They also made a first-round appearance in the NCAA Championship.

First year player Ava Deguzman received CUNYAC Player of the Year while their coach, Gregory Wyzykowski, won Coach of the Year. The Bearcats also yielded two First Team All-Stars, Lauren Kraker and Esther Benjamin, as well as Second Team All-Star Regina Kelley, who also made the CUNYAC Sportsmanship Team.

Men’s volleyball finished with a record of 16-13 and was named CUNYAC tournament Champions. They also made a first-round appearance in the NCAA Championship. The Bearcats produced three First Team All-Stars: Stallone Shankar, Jack Centeno and Akil Vaughn. Freshman outside hitter Haoxin Hu received Second Team All-Star. Senior Justin Iloulianearned a spot on the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Baseball finished with a record of 16-9 and was named CUNYAC regular season and tournament champions. Joseph Cocozza, a freshman second baseman, received CUNYAC Player of the Year. Senior Pitcher Matthew Lawlor earnedCUNYAC Pitcher of the Year, while Head Coach Jose Torres earned CUNYAC Coach of the Year. The Bearcats also had two first-year players named CUNYAC All-Stars, Pedro Tejada and Brian Hwang. Senior Luke Lombardi earned a spot on the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Softball finished with a record of 21-18 and was named Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III Championship runner-ups. Freshman pitcher and third basewoman Carly Quint earned CUNYAC Player of the Year, while Head Coach Nicole Bellini earned CUNYAC Coach of the Year. The Bearcats produced three freshman All-Stars: Julia Cuttone, Megan Bell and Bridget Campanelli. Cuttone was also named to the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Men’s tennis finished with a record of 11-4. The team was named CUNYAC regular season and tournament champions and made a first-round appearance in the NCAA Championships. Two first-year men’s tennis players received CUNYAC awards. Christopher Tham was named CUNYAC Player of the Year and Nicholas Santiago was named CUNYAC Rookie of the Year. Head coach of the Bearcats men’s tennis team, Gregory Wyzykowski, received Coach of the Year. Hudson Kaylie earned a spot on the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Soccer finished with a record of 7-7-1 and was named CUNYAC tournament champions. They also made a first-round appearance in the NCAA Championship tournament. The Bearcats produced two First Team All-Star players, John Ananoria and Cormac Foley, along with two Second Team All-Star players, Nicholas Billotti and Jemali Zarnadze. SeniorLuis Munoz received CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Women’s cross-country finished in fourth place in the CUNYAC Finals. Senior women’s cross country runner, Karina Chiqui, was named to the CUNYAC All-Star team. Julia Cuttone earned a spot on the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Men’s cross-country finished in second place in the CUNYAC Finals, making it their best finish in team history. Freshman men’s cross-country runner Riley Walz received CUNYAC Rookie of the Year. The Bearcats finished with four All-Stars: Daniel Sedgh, Riley Walz, Samuel Grimmke and Jairo Reina. Grimmke earned a spot on the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Women’s volleyball finished with a record of 11-17 and advanced to the CUNYAC tournament semifinals. FreshmanSarah Chung was named CUNYAC Player of the Year. The Bearcats had two First Team All-Stars, Ada Cao and Julia Perkowski, and two Second Team All-Stars, Amina Muminovic and Minami Ebihara. Senior Young Gi Go earned CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Men’s basketball finished with a record of 20-8 and won the CUNYAC championship. They made a first-round appearance in the NCAA Championship. Senior Adnan Bajarami was a CUNYAC and National Association of Basketball Coaches All-Star, as well as an Metropolitan Basketball Writers and D3hoops.com Second Team All-Star. Emil Purisic earned Second Team CUNYAC All-Star and Michael Richards earned the CUNYAC Burt Beagle Sportsmanship Award.

Women’s basketball finished with a record of 10-11 and advanced to the CUNYAC tournament semifinals. Mia Castillowas named CUNYAC Rookie of the Year. Melinda Spahiu was named Second Team All-Star and Valsenia Michie was named to the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Men’s swimming finished with a record of 6-1, winning first seed in the CUNYAC regular season and the tournament championship. Dayan Ordabayev received CUNYAC Performer of the Year, Youseff Elkouly received CUNYAC Rookie of the Year and Head Coach Charles Lampasso received Coach of the Year. The Bearcats produced three All-Stars: Nicholas Blanco, Gary Danilyan and Abdul Khan. Nicholas Blanco also was named to the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

Women’s swimming finished with a record of 5-5 and advanced to the CUNYAC Championship semifinals. Aanya Shukul won CUNYAC Rookie of the Year, while the team produced three All-Stars: Amanda Lee, Katherine Lee and Joyce Wong. Lee also earned the CUNYAC All-Sportsmanship Award.

Editor’s Note: Julia Cuttone is a student athlete on Baruch’s softball and women’s cross-country teams.