ALBANY, N.Y. — Stony Brook student-athletes Jamie Orson (men's soccer) and Reilly Rich (women's soccer) were recognized as SUNY Scholar-Athletes of the Year for combining academic achievement with success in the arena of athletic competition during the fall semester.

Orson had a season to remember in his lone year at Stony Brook, both athletically and academically. On the pitch, Orson became the first-ever men's soccer field player to receive a CAA Major Award (Co-Defender of the Year). Additionally, he earned recognition from the ECAC, United Soccer Coaches and the CAA. Academically, Orson earned a Master's in Decision Analytics in Business, boasting a 3.93 grade point average.

Rich concluded her illustrious Stony Brook career by becoming Stony Brook's fourth-ever unique United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-American recipient. Earlier this year, Rich received All-ECAC First Team honors, All-CAA First Team recognition, United Soccer Coaches All-East Region distinction and was No. 85 on the Top Drawer Soccer Postseason National College Soccer Player Rankings. Academically, Rich boasted a perfect 4.0 GPA as a graduate student working towards her MBA, earning herself CSC Academic All-District honors.

The SUNY Scholar-Athlete Awards recognize student-athletes from SUNY colleges and universities sponsoring intercollegiate athletics at the four- and two-year levels who were nominated and voted upon by representatives of their respective institutions. Students are nominated by their institutions based on their cumulative grade point average, current and career statistics, and athletic and academic honors.

The SUNY Scholar Athlete Awards recognize outstanding academic and athletic success in 29 different sports and are presented three times a year to coincide with the specific sports contested in the fall, winter and spring seasons. The Scholar Athletes of the Year in each sport will then be nominated for an overall Scholar Athlete of the Year for men's sports and women's sports in each category that will be announced in mid-July.

More than 14,000 student-athletes compete at SUNY institutions representing 53 different colleges and universities at the NCAA Division I, NCAA Division III/USCAA and NJCAA levels and are eligible for the awards.