Salute to the Class of 2024
 
It's graduation week at Stony Brook, which means celebrations and ceremonies honoring the Class of 2024.
 
This is a very special group of students who deserve to be properly feted after their senior year of high school was derailed by closures. From graduation to prom to competitive seasons, so much was taken from them. As they entered Stony Brook in the fall of 2020, they were met with restrictions and rules like so many college students across the country.
 
As much as I've tried to put those days behind me, I have thought about them frequently this week. It was a particularly challenging time for our incoming freshmen, who were looking to enter college with a return to normalcy. Although we did everything within our control to deliver an optimal experience, masks and testing – which one would hardly describe as optimal – were part of it.
 
Through it all, the Class of 2024 persevered. I am so proud of this group and believe that the obstacles they faced strengthened them in so many ways. When we celebrated our seniors at our annual Wolfie Awards on May 6, I was overcome with a feeling of gratitude. Not only did they make it through their freshman year, but they also helped us usher in a new era for Stony Brook Athletics when we joined the CAA in 2022. 
 
Tomorrow we will celebrate our graduates and their families at our annual graduation breakfast. It is undoubtedly a highlight of my year as it encapsulates the pinnacle of our student-athletes' Stony Brook experience.
 
To the Class of 2024, thank you for inspiring me more than you can ever know. You will always hold a special place in my heart, and I can't wait to celebrate you tomorrow.
 
Women's Lacrosse Wraps Up Another Historic Year
 
For the 11^th consecutive time, our women's lacrosse team earned a berth to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Under the direction of Joe Spallina, the program remains in rare air as a perennial national power. The culture that has been cemented is truly unique and unlike anything I've ever been around. Our team continues to be dominant in conference play, maintaining the nation's longest current unbeaten streak in any sport. This year's squad was led by an amazing group of seniors, including Ellie Masera who last week became the second Seawolf to be named a finalist for the prestigious Tewaaraton Award, and fellow All-Americans Alex Finn, Kailyn Hart, Clare Levy and Charlotte Verhulst.
 
Although the season ended on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against Syracuse, our women's lacrosse program continues to be the gold standard for our department. This year was certainly no exception, and the future remains as bright as ever!
 
Runners Blaze New Trails at CAA Outdoor Championships
 
While our women's lacrosse team was competing in Syracuse, our track and field teams were tearing up the track at the CAA Outdoor Championships at Elon.
 
Freshman Collin Gilstrap continued his torrid season by winning the 1,500-meter run with a time of 3:44.33. His performance came on the heels of his 1,500-meter victory at the Penn Relays on May 3 when he ran a personal best of 3:42.53.
 
Other standouts at the CAA meet on the men's team included freshman George Franks, who finished second in the 400-meter run while setting a new school record of 45.88, graduate Evan Brennan (second in the 10,000-meter at 30:39.11) and graduate Carlos Santos (second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at 8:55.79 and third in the 5,000-meter at 14:42.22).
 
Our women's team was led by senior Fiona McLoughlin (second in 10K at 35:55.39) and junior Grace Weigele (fourth in the 5K at 16:16.06).
 
Next up is the NCAA Regional meet next week.
 
Finally, our baseball team is competing in its final regular season series of the year this weekend at Northeastern. Their trip necessitated a special graduation ceremony for our baseball seniors on Monday since they will miss tomorrow's main event. It was a great night celebrating a tremendous group!
 
Keep believing!
 


Shawn