AMHERST, N.Y. - Daemen College has been selected as one of 28 finalists for the
NCAA Division II Award of Excellence which honors "initiatives in the past year that exemplify the Division II philosophy, community engagement and student-athlete leadership." The
announcement of award finalists was made Monday afternoon at
ncaa.org.
The Daemen Division of Athletics was recognized for its continued work with
Team IMPACT, a national non-profit organization that tackles the emotional trauma and social isolation experienced by children facing serious and chronic illnesses by pairing them with collegiate athletic teams. Daemen has worked with Team IMPACT for nearly a decade, but the relationship grew with the
announcement of a formal partnership last July. Following the announcement, Tompkins Bank of Castile stepped forward as a corporate partner to provide funding for Daemen's Team IMPACT initiatives.
Currently, six Daemen programs are connected with Team IMPACT children. In the last year, four events were held to welcome new Team IMPACT children to their respective Daemen teams. In addition,
Ava Hackett, who has been paired with the Daemen women's volleyball team, was
able to travel to Tampa, Florida for the NCAA Division II Elite Eight when the Wildcats advanced there last month, thanks to funding direct from Team IMPACT.
A committee of athletics administrators selected this year's finalists, while the national Division II Student-Athlete Advisory Committee will determine the winner. The Division II Award of Excellence recipient, along with first and second runners-up, will be announced January 22 at the 2022 NCAA Convention during the Division II business session. The NCAA Convention runs from January 19-22 in Indianapolis.
Each finalist institution receives $500. The award recipient will receive $2,500, the first runner-up will receive $1,250 and the second runner-up will receive $1,000. All price money is dispersed for use on future SAAC initiaitves or community engagement projects at each respective institution.
This marks the second time that Daemen has been named a finalist for the Division II Award of Excellence. In 2018, Daemen was
chosen as the second runner-up for the creation and implementation of the college's
Center for Allied and Unified Sport and Exercise (CAUSE) which provides recreational and competitive athletic opportunities for persons with disabilities.
Daemen College features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 18 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.