ST. AUGUSTINE – The Flagler College Department of Athletics held its fourth annual Saints Choice Awards Wednesday night at the Lewis Auditorium.

Flagler student-athletes were able to vote for their own teammates and friends for various awards. A red carpet was draped over the front steps of the auditorium to give the attendees a celebrity feel like one would see at the Oscars.

The Male Athlete of the Year went to Max Gottwald of the men's soccer team. The junior from Harsewinkel, Germany was a United Soccer Coaches third team All-American, a first team all-region pick by the United Soccer Coaches and D2CCA, the Peach Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year and a first team All-PBC selection this past fall after scoring three goals, all on penalty attempts, and he logged 1,599 minutes. Gottwald was part of a defense that recorded eight shutouts.

The Female Athlete of the Year went to Andrea Fernandez of the women's soccer team. The senior from Pozoblanco, Spain earned third team All-America honors from the United Soccer Coaches and was the D2CCA National Player of the Year and took home first team All-America honors from the D2CCA. She earned first team all-region from the United Soccer Coaches and was the D2CCA Southeast Region Player of the Year. Fernandez was selected as the PBC Offensive Player of the Year for the fourth time in her career, which is a league record. Fernandez also received the Select Sport Gold Ball Award for the fourth time. She earned first team all-conference honors for the fourth year in a row. Fernandez led the team with 22 goals and 13 assists for 57 total points. She leaves holding the career record for goals (74), assists (45), and points (193).

The Male Team of the Year went to the men's lacrosse team. After finishing last year with a loss in the PBC Tournament final, the team reeled off 11-consecutive wins and currently holds a 14-2 overall record and will host the PBC Tournament championship game on Friday against Colorado Mesa University. The Saints won the Peach Belt Division final at Lander, defeating the Bearcats, 11-10. Flagler has been ranked as high as No. 6 in the nation and has defeated five nationally ranked teams this year.

The Female Team of the Year went to the women's golf team. Last year the team advanced to the NCAA Division II National Tournament and finished in first place in the stroke play portion. This year, the team has been ranked as high as No. 2 nationally and has won four tournaments. Stella Jelinek and Henriette Stranda have been consistently ranked in the top 10 all year.

The Athletics Director's Award recipients were Ethan Tank of the men's cross country and track teams and Maddie Rodriguez of the women's cross country and track teams. Tank holds a 4.00 cumulative grade point average and is a mathematics major with a double minor in psychology and law while Rodriguez has a 3.94 GPA and is a graphic design major with a minor in advertising and fine arts.

The Golden Saint Awards went to Cooper Smith of the baseball team and Kaelyn Figueras of the women's lacrosse team.

The Resilience Award went to Jessica Wright of the women's lacrosse team.

Best Performance went to Taylor Stone of the women's cross country team as she became the first Flagler runner to win a regional title.

The Spirit Award was presented to senior cheerleader Alexis Guzman.

The Play of the Year went to Trace McDonald of the men's lacrosse team and his overtime goal vs. No. 15 Saint Leo University.

The Athlete of Character award was presented to Max Gottwald of the men's soccer team. He served as the team captain and was an exceptional teammate. His sportsmanship was evident after games, often the first to shake the hands of the opposing team and coaches.

The Top Tier Award, presented by Flagler director of sports performance Connor Gettemy, went to women's lacrosse's Molly Sloan.

Reiss Skeen of the men's soccer team won the Male Newcomer of the Year award. The Sevenoaks, England native, earned D2CCA All-Southeast Region second team honors and was selected to the All-PBC first team. He was named to the all-tournament team.

Grace Simon of the women's soccer team won the Female Newcomer of the Year award. The Brighton, Michigan native earned United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region second team honors and was a first team all-conference pick. Simon played every minute – 1,640 – in all 18 matches. 

The Male Freshman of the Year went to Josiah Shackelford of the men's basketball team. The Sanford, Florida native was named the PBC Freshman of the Year and earned third-team All-PBC honors after averaging a team-high 15.8 points and grabbed 4.0 rebounds per game.

The Female Freshman of the Year went to Ava Lambros of the women's lacrosse team. The Fallston, Maryland native, has scored 26 goals and tallied three assists in 18 games played so far this season.

The Male Breakthrough Athlete of the Year went to Finn Russell of the men's cross country and track teams. The sophomore from Ipswich, Massachusetts earned first team all-conference honors after winning the 5000 meters at the PBC indoor championship.

Dana Heimen of the women's tennis team was the recipient of the Female Breakthrough Athlete of the Year. The Ketsch, Germany native earned first team All-PBC honors in singles and doubles this year. She holds an overall record of 27-9 in singles and is 25-8 in doubles. Heimen is ranked No. 8 in the nation in singles and is No. 3 in doubles with Anastasia Nikolova.

The Male Silent Superstar of the Year went to Simon Malis of the men's tennis team while the Female Silent Superstar of the Year was Paige Churchill of the women's soccer team.

The Game of the Year was men's lacrosse's overtime win on "Senior Night" over No. 15 Saint Leo University.

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