Xavier University Athletics
Luke Franzoni Named BIG EAST Sport Excellence Award Winner for Baseball
07.26.22 | Baseball
Award recognizes academic and athletic achievement as well as community service.
NEW YORK - The BIG EAST Conference has announced the winners of the 2021-22 BIG EAST Sport Excellence Awards on Tuesday, with Xavier's Luke Franzoni earning the honor for the sport of baseball. The award recognizes academic and athletic achievement as well as community service.
The Sport Excellence Awards are given to one student-athlete in each BIG EAST-sponsored sport based on academic credentials, athletic accolades or performances and volunteer service to the community. Student-athletes who have attained junior academic standing and a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 3.00 are eligible. The winners are chosen by the BIG EAST Faculty Athletics Representative Council.
Franzoni, who holds a 3.9 GPA in marketing, was named BIG EAST Co-Player of the Year and to the conference First Team following an outstanding senior season where he led the Musketeers with a .358 batting average, collecting 76 hits, including 41 for extra bases. Among those extra base hits were 29 home runs, a single-season school record for Xavier and a mark that is tied for the most in NCAA DI at the conclusion of conference tournaments. Franzoni also set a new school record for runs batted in in a single season at 78, as well as tying the single game marks for home runs (3) and RBI (11).
Following the season, Franzoni was named to the 2022 ABCA/Rawlings All-America Third Team after picking up First Team All-East Region honors from the ABCA. He also earned Second Team All-American honors from Collegiate Baseball. He was selected in the 19th round in the 2022 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Los Angeles Angels.
Of the list of 22 honorees this year in the BIG EAST, 13 of the winners competed in the NCAAs in their respective sports and 14 were 2021-22 Major Award Winners or BIG EAST Championship winners.
Villanova led the way with six honorees, while DePaul ranked second with four recipients. Seven student-athlete winners, DePaul's Maranda Gutierrez, Marija Jovicic and Morgan Turner, Providence's Marcelo Rocha, St. John's Jessie Kweon, Villanova's Sade Meeks joined Franzoni with an undergraduate GPA of 3.9 or higher.
While the format of the awards allows for only one declared winner in each sport category, the selection of the recipients proves each year to be a challenge for the FAR Council, as candidate nominees represent exceptional student-athletes who excel in academics, service, and athletics, and are outstanding representatives of their schools and the Conference.
2021-22 BIG EAST Sports Excellence Award Winners:
$ - undergraduate GPA indicated only
The Sport Excellence Awards are given to one student-athlete in each BIG EAST-sponsored sport based on academic credentials, athletic accolades or performances and volunteer service to the community. Student-athletes who have attained junior academic standing and a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 3.00 are eligible. The winners are chosen by the BIG EAST Faculty Athletics Representative Council.
Franzoni, who holds a 3.9 GPA in marketing, was named BIG EAST Co-Player of the Year and to the conference First Team following an outstanding senior season where he led the Musketeers with a .358 batting average, collecting 76 hits, including 41 for extra bases. Among those extra base hits were 29 home runs, a single-season school record for Xavier and a mark that is tied for the most in NCAA DI at the conclusion of conference tournaments. Franzoni also set a new school record for runs batted in in a single season at 78, as well as tying the single game marks for home runs (3) and RBI (11).
Following the season, Franzoni was named to the 2022 ABCA/Rawlings All-America Third Team after picking up First Team All-East Region honors from the ABCA. He also earned Second Team All-American honors from Collegiate Baseball. He was selected in the 19th round in the 2022 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Los Angeles Angels.
Of the list of 22 honorees this year in the BIG EAST, 13 of the winners competed in the NCAAs in their respective sports and 14 were 2021-22 Major Award Winners or BIG EAST Championship winners.
Villanova led the way with six honorees, while DePaul ranked second with four recipients. Seven student-athlete winners, DePaul's Maranda Gutierrez, Marija Jovicic and Morgan Turner, Providence's Marcelo Rocha, St. John's Jessie Kweon, Villanova's Sade Meeks joined Franzoni with an undergraduate GPA of 3.9 or higher.
While the format of the awards allows for only one declared winner in each sport category, the selection of the recipients proves each year to be a challenge for the FAR Council, as candidate nominees represent exceptional student-athletes who excel in academics, service, and athletics, and are outstanding representatives of their schools and the Conference.
2021-22 BIG EAST Sports Excellence Award Winners:
| Sport | Student-Athlete | Institution | Major | GPA $ |
| Baseball | Luke Franzoni | Xavier | Marketing | 3.900 |
| Men's Basketball | Collin Gillespie | Villanova | Communications | 3.200 |
| Women's Basketball | Maddy Siegrist | Villanova | Communications | 3.260 |
| Men's Cross Country | Marcelo Rocha | Providence | Environmental Biology | 3.980 |
| Women's Cross Country | Lauren Ginefra | Seton Hall | Biology | 3.637 |
| Men's Indoor Track & Field | Sean Dolan | Villanova | Communications | 3.390 |
| Women's Indoor Track & Field | Sade Meeks | Villanova | Accounting | 4.000 |
| Men's Outdoor Track & Field | Barry Keane | Butler | Finance | 3.205 |
| Women's Outdoor Track & Field | Alex O'Neill | Providence | Marketing and French | 3.350 |
| Field Hockey | Ciara Weets | Georgetown | Science, Tech & Int'l Affairs | 3.728 |
| Men's Golf | Hunter Eichhorn | Marquette | Corporate Communication & Communication Studies | 3.200 |
| Women's Golf | Jessie Kweon | St. John's | Sport Management | 3.900 |
| Men's Lacrosse | Matt Grillo | Providence | Finance | 3.590 |
| Women's Lacrosse | Landyn White | UCONN | Allied Health Sciences | 3.646 |
| Men's Soccer | Dante Polvara | Georgetown | Finance | 3.469 |
| Women's Soccer | Morgan Turner | DePaul | Political Science | 3.961 |
| Softball | Maranda Gutierrez | DePaul | Elementary Education | 3.988 |
| Men's Swimming & Diving | Michael Ackert | Villanova | Marketing and Business Analytics | 3.550 |
| Women's Swimming & Diving | Kelly Montesi | Villanova | Nursing | 3.340 |
| Men's Tennis | Vito Tonejc | DePaul | Sports Communication | 3.551 |
| Women's Tennis | Marija Jovicic | DePaul | Computer Science | 4.000 |
| Volleyball | Hope Werch | Marquette | Communication Studies | 3.547 |
$ - undergraduate GPA indicated only
Players Mentioned
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