The Sarah Devens Award Committee announced Wednesday that the 2022-23 award will be presented to Carly Bennick of Holy Cross and Kate Riley of Quinnipiac.
This year marks the first time the award has been presented to so many student-athletes, with the committee deciding both highly deserving and ultimately very close to making a clear decision.
Presented annually to the player who “displays leadership and commitment on and off the ice,” the Devens Award is awarded as a joint ECAC Hockey and Hockey East honor and aids a deserving student-athlete with a $15,000 graduate scholarship. The award is named in honor of former Dartmouth hockey player Sarah Devens, who died in 1995 before her junior year. This year’s winners will receive $15,000 each in postgraduate scholarships.
“It is an absolute honor to receive an award in the name of Sarah Devine,” Bennick said in a statement. “She’s the kind of person every athlete strives to be like. She was an incredible player, leader and teammate, so to have an award in her name means a lot to me. I want to thank my amazing coaches and teammates for supporting me and pushing me to be my best self and teammate over the past four years.” I couldn’t do it without them. I would also like to thank my family for supporting me throughout my hockey journey and showing me what it means to be a good captain. Finally, I would like to thank the Devens family for making such a wonderful gift to college athletes. This scholarship will help me a lot On my journey after graduation I am forever grateful for your family’s generosity.”
Riley added, “I am honored to receive the Sarah Devens Award, and I would like to express my appreciation and gratitude to the Devens family.” “Competing as a collegiate athlete is a privilege that has allowed me to pursue my academic goals and given me the opportunity to be a leader in my community. I am grateful for this scholarship, which will help me continue my studies after Quinnipiac. I will strive to continue to be a leader throughout the remainder of my academic and athletic career.”
Riley, who will compete as a fifth year at Quinnipiac next season, completed her bachelor’s degree in biology in three years (she graduated summa cum laude) and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in molecular cell biology. She is the chair of the Q-Munity Service Program at Quinnipiac and won the 2021-22 Athletic Department Award for Community Service. Riley also conducted independent research for which she was awarded a $2,500 grant to support her work and eventually presented at the Society for Clinical Movement and Clinical Movement conference.
On the ice, she played 124 games with the Bobcats, scoring 21 goals and 37 assists while helping the program to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances and a pair of tournament wins.
Beniek is working toward a bachelor’s degree in the Health Professions and Economics Counseling Program at Pre-Med. She completed her undergraduate research with UMass Med and presented her findings at the Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association in November. She serves as a first responder on the EMT site during non-hockey events and also coordinates Big Brother Big Sister participation for her team.
On the rink, Beniek played a huge role in Holy Cross’ move to Hockey East. She played 114 games with the Crusaders, scoring seven goals and nine assists in her career.
Previous winners of the award have been: 1997 – Katherine Waldo (F), Northeastern; 1998 – Sarah Hood (female), Dartmouth; 1999 – Jimmy Totten (D), NE; 2000 – Carrie Jokyll (female) from New Hampshire. 2001 – Christina Sorbara (female), Brown; 2002 – Diana Bell (female), Cornell; 2003 – Rachel Barry (G), St. Lawrence; 2004 – Lindsay Charlebois (female), St. Lawrence; 2005 – Nicole Correiro (female) Harvard. 2006 – Karen Thatcher (female), Providence; 2007 – Lindsey Williams (female), Clarkson; 2008 Lizzie Kiddie (P), Princeton; 2009; – Marianna Luke (female), St. Lawrence; 2010 – Laura Gersten (female), Rensselaer; 2011 – Jackie Snickers (G), Yale; 2012 – Alica Hughes (female), Yale; 2013 – Alisa Zopon (female), Yale; 2014 – Vanessa Gagnon (female), Clarkson; 2015 – Chelsea Laden (G) Quinnipiac; 2016 – Allison Rolandelli (D), Brown; 2017 – Paula Voorhees (G), Cornell; 2018 – Taylor Willard (D), Vermont; 2019 – Kenzie Lancaster (female), Quinnipiac; 2020 – Sammy Davis (female) Boston U. 2021 – Grace Markey (female), Quinnipiac; 2022 – Gianna Meloni (G), Yale