George Washington University Athletics
GW Athletics Toasted to the Class of 2024
Annual Athletics' Senior Class Toast Sends Grads Off in Style
5/17/2024 9:19:00 PM | General, Men's Soccer, Men's Swimming and Diving, Softball, Women's Rowing, Women's Volleyball
GW Athletics made a toast to its Class of 2024 on Friday with soon-to-be grads gathering in cap and gown for one last time.
Honors were bestowed to five of the graduates, with the awards including the Lynn George Outstanding Senior Female Student-Athlete, J. Dallas Shirley Outstanding Male Student-Athlete, top female and male scholar athlete recognition and Student-Athlete Leadership Award.
The Lynn George Outstanding Senior Female Student-Athlete Award is presented annually to an outstanding women's senior athlete who exemplifies excellence in athletics, academics and citizenship. Lynn George was an outstanding GW student-athlete in the late 1940s, who later became the first director of women's athletics at GW, holding the position for 12 years through 1987.
This year's winner was softball's Alexa Williams. Williams just closed the book on one of the best careers ever seen by a GW softball student-athlete. In just three seasons, she worked her way into the GW all-time top ten in numerous career statistics, including RBI, extra-base hits, hits, runs scored, doubles and more. Williams was selected to the A-10 All-Conference Second Team at outfield this season after leading the team with 37 RBI and 13 doubles, and she also represented GW on the A-10 All-Academic Team. She leaves GW as one of the most decorated Revolutionaries ever in the sport, as she is just one of three softball student-athletes to ever be named the A-10 Player of the Year, which she accomplished in 2022.
The J. Dallas Shirley Outstanding Senior Male Student-Athlete Award is given to a graduating male senior who also embodies the characteristics of a well-rounded student-athlete. Shirley, a 1935 GW graduate, was a GW basketball star who later went on to a distinguished career as a D.C. educator and basketball official. Shirley was a well-known college and NBA referee as well as officiating in the 1960 Summer Olympics. He is one of just two GW graduates – the other being the legendary Red Auerbach – in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Men's swimming's Karol Mlynarczyk brought home the 2024 honor. In an incredible four-year career swimming in Foggy Bottom, Mlynarczyk's tenure started out with a bang in 2020-21, when he was named the A-10 Most Outstanding Performer and Most Outstanding Rookie Performer when he earned six gold medals while leading GW to a team championship. He added All-Conference First Team accolades to his resume in every season of his career, including this season as he made three individual A-10 Finals and scored 42.5 points to help GW roll to another conference championship. Mlynarczyk ends his time in Foggy Bottom holding GW all-time top-ten times in six events, which includes GW's second-fastest 100-yard backstroke time ever.
The Student-Athlete Leadership Award was presented to Celeste Noraian of women's rowing, a consummate teammate in helping her team to new heights during her career. Unable to make the toast as she's with her team vying for another Atlantic 10 Championship this weekend, she has been an ever-present representative for the program both on and off the water and helped the program earn its first-ever Atlantic 10 Championship last season as part of the Varsity 4 boat. Off the water, Noraian has been volunteering for the Grassroots Project throughout her time at GW. As a Grassroots volunteer and coach, she has led programming in areas of sexual health, nutrition, and mental health for under-resourced elementary and middle schools students in the DMV Area. In total she has volunteered 272 hours to the Grassroots Organization for GW Athletics this year alone.
Volleyball's Markella Lanara, a Psychological and Brain Sciences major, who was a recipient of the GW Presidential Fellowship to pursue her master's degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, and men's soccer's Tim Neumann, a perfect 4.0 student who won the Outstanding Academic Achievement award three times from GW's Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, claimed the 2024 Female and Male Scholar Athlete Awards.Â
Honors were bestowed to five of the graduates, with the awards including the Lynn George Outstanding Senior Female Student-Athlete, J. Dallas Shirley Outstanding Male Student-Athlete, top female and male scholar athlete recognition and Student-Athlete Leadership Award.
The Lynn George Outstanding Senior Female Student-Athlete Award is presented annually to an outstanding women's senior athlete who exemplifies excellence in athletics, academics and citizenship. Lynn George was an outstanding GW student-athlete in the late 1940s, who later became the first director of women's athletics at GW, holding the position for 12 years through 1987.
This year's winner was softball's Alexa Williams. Williams just closed the book on one of the best careers ever seen by a GW softball student-athlete. In just three seasons, she worked her way into the GW all-time top ten in numerous career statistics, including RBI, extra-base hits, hits, runs scored, doubles and more. Williams was selected to the A-10 All-Conference Second Team at outfield this season after leading the team with 37 RBI and 13 doubles, and she also represented GW on the A-10 All-Academic Team. She leaves GW as one of the most decorated Revolutionaries ever in the sport, as she is just one of three softball student-athletes to ever be named the A-10 Player of the Year, which she accomplished in 2022.
The J. Dallas Shirley Outstanding Senior Male Student-Athlete Award is given to a graduating male senior who also embodies the characteristics of a well-rounded student-athlete. Shirley, a 1935 GW graduate, was a GW basketball star who later went on to a distinguished career as a D.C. educator and basketball official. Shirley was a well-known college and NBA referee as well as officiating in the 1960 Summer Olympics. He is one of just two GW graduates – the other being the legendary Red Auerbach – in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Men's swimming's Karol Mlynarczyk brought home the 2024 honor. In an incredible four-year career swimming in Foggy Bottom, Mlynarczyk's tenure started out with a bang in 2020-21, when he was named the A-10 Most Outstanding Performer and Most Outstanding Rookie Performer when he earned six gold medals while leading GW to a team championship. He added All-Conference First Team accolades to his resume in every season of his career, including this season as he made three individual A-10 Finals and scored 42.5 points to help GW roll to another conference championship. Mlynarczyk ends his time in Foggy Bottom holding GW all-time top-ten times in six events, which includes GW's second-fastest 100-yard backstroke time ever.
The Student-Athlete Leadership Award was presented to Celeste Noraian of women's rowing, a consummate teammate in helping her team to new heights during her career. Unable to make the toast as she's with her team vying for another Atlantic 10 Championship this weekend, she has been an ever-present representative for the program both on and off the water and helped the program earn its first-ever Atlantic 10 Championship last season as part of the Varsity 4 boat. Off the water, Noraian has been volunteering for the Grassroots Project throughout her time at GW. As a Grassroots volunteer and coach, she has led programming in areas of sexual health, nutrition, and mental health for under-resourced elementary and middle schools students in the DMV Area. In total she has volunteered 272 hours to the Grassroots Organization for GW Athletics this year alone.
Volleyball's Markella Lanara, a Psychological and Brain Sciences major, who was a recipient of the GW Presidential Fellowship to pursue her master's degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, and men's soccer's Tim Neumann, a perfect 4.0 student who won the Outstanding Academic Achievement award three times from GW's Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, claimed the 2024 Female and Male Scholar Athlete Awards.Â
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
Backstroke/Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming and Diving
M
/ Men's Soccer
/ Women's Rowing
UT
/ SoftballGW Women's Basketball vs. Morgan St. (Post-Game Press Conference)
Sunday, November 23
GW Men's Basketball vs. UMBC (Post-Game Press Conference)
Thursday, November 20
GW Men's Basketball vs. ODU (Post-Game Press Conference)
Sunday, November 16
GW Men's Basketball vs American (Post-Game Press Conference)
Thursday, November 13