Benji Awards Recognizes Top Team and Individual Accomplishments
Buffalo State Athletics held its annual Benji Awards show on May 3 in the Rockwell Hall Performing Arts Center to celebrate the outstanding team and individual accomplishments of the 2025–2026 seasons. The event is a theater-style awards show, like the ESPYs and the Oscars. In addition to paying tribute to the 61 seniors in the Class of 2026, Buffalo State presented “Benjis” to the evening's top honorees:
Golden Bengal Award
Dr. Ron Stewart
Ruth Houston Award (Female Outstanding Career)
Natalia Sawyer, Track and Field
Hube Coyer Award (Male Outstanding Career)
Diego Rivera, Soccer
Female Athlete of the Year
Natalia Sawyer, Track and Field
Male Athlete of the Year
Gavin Wilczewski, Volleyball
Female First-Year Athlete of the Year
Dakota Carlson, Hockey
Male First-Year Athlete of the Year
Lesedi Sekhobo, Soccer
Female Senior Scholar-Athlete Award
Vanessa Willick, Hockey/Lacrosse
Male Senior Scholar-Athlete Award
Sam Gregson, Soccer
SAAC Bengal Cup
Acrobatics and Tumbling
Team of the Year
Men’s Volleyball
Sawyer Caps Historic Career with First Team All-America Honors
Natalia Sawyer, a senior from Schenectady, New York, capped her historic collegiate track and field career with First Team All-America honors following a third-place finish in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2026 NCAA Championships in La Crosse, Wisconsin, in May.
She concludes her time at Buffalo State with one of the most impressive athletic resumes in school history:
• 3-time National Champion
• 8-time All-American
• 14-time SUNYAC Champion
• 5-time SUNYAC Track Athlete of the Year
• 2-time USTFCCCA Regional Athlete of the Year
• SUNYAC Track Rookie of the Year
• 24 All-SUNYAC honors
• 25 USTFCCCA All-Region honors
• 5 School Records
• Second fastest time in Division III history in the 400-meter hurdles (58.01)
Honan Earns Second Team All-America Honors in Hammer Throw
Bryan Honan, a sophomore from Cortland, New York, earned Second Team All-America honors after a 12th place finish in the hammer throw at the 2026 NCAA Championships in La Crosse, Wisconsin, in May. Honan competed in the first of two flights of the hammer throw. On his third and final attempt, he hit a mark of 56.75 meters to earn his first career All-America honor. He is the first thrower to earn All-America honors in program history.
Softball Reaches SUNYAC Final; Post Most Wins Since 2009
The Buffalo State softball team finished its season as the three-seed in the SUNYAC Tournament after posting a record of 28-13 (12-6 SUNYAC), their best overall record since the 2009 season. The Bengals knocked out Oswego, Oneonta, and New Paltz in the conference tournament before falling to Cortland in the championship game, 6-1. For their efforts, head coach Jamie Brown and assistant coaches Julia Blujus and Caitlyn Parsons earned the Sandra Hollander Coaching Staff of the Year from SUNYAC. Lexi Quagliana and Izzy Pezdek earned All-SUNYAC First Team honors, while Ella Stewart and Natalie Burck were Second Team selections. Quagliana was also named to the NFCA Division III All-Region Third Team.
Men’s Volleyball Wins AMCC Championship, Advances to NCAA Tournament
In just its third year of NCAA competition, the Buffalo State men’s volleyball finished its season with a record of 29-5 (12-0 AMCC) after winning back-to-back AMCC Championships. The Bengals won their first NCAA Tournament game in program history against New Jersey City before falling to #1-ranked and eventual national champion Springfield in four sets in the next round.
Gavin Wilczewski, a junior from East Aurora, New York, was named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-America Second Team. He is the first player in program history to earn the honor. He was also named the AMCC Player of the Year, AMCC First Team All-Conference, AVCA All-Region II, and earned a spot on the All-Regional Tournament Team following the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament. In addition, junior Kaden Strong was a First Team AMCC All-Conference pick, Brady Bowman and Drew Bowman each earned a spot on the AMCC All-Conference Second Team, and Kellen Palmer was named the AMCC Newcomer of the Year. Head coach Daniel Miranda was named the AVCA Region II Coach of the Year and repeated as the AMCC Coach of the Year.
Men’s Soccer Falls in SUNYAC Championship; Rivera Sets Single-Season Scoring Marks
The Buffalo State men’s soccer team fell in the SUNYAC Championship to the Oneonta Red Dragons, 2-1, at Coyer Field. After reaching the NCAA Sweet 16 for the first time in team history last year, the Bengals completed the 2025 campaign with an impressive 13-2-5 record (5-0-4 SUNYAC). The team was ranked #16 in the nation in the United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division III preseason poll.
Senior forward Diego Rivera earned Third Team All-America and First Team All-Region honors following a historic season for the Bengals. Rivera led the conference and the country in points (60) and goals (26), which are both the most in a single season in program history. The previous record was held by Mike Rudney, who scored 24 goals with 55 points during the 1999 season. After earning First Team All-America last season, Rivera is just the fifth player in program history to earn All-America honors twice in their career and the first since Buffalo State Athletics Hall of Fame member Bob DiNunzio in 1983 and 1984. Rivera received his third First Team All-SUNYAC selection and is also the first Bengal to win the Huntley Parker SUNYAC Offensive Player of the Year twice in his career. He was also named to the SUNYAC All-Tournament Team.
Salvador Gomes was named First Team All-SUNYAC, while Lesedi Sekhobo, Sam Gregson, Tapiwa Mushonga, and Carson Smith earned Second Team All-SUNYAC honors. Sekhobo also was named SUNYAC Rookie of the Year. He is the third player in program history to earn conference Rookie of the Year honors, joining Theo Pencic in 2018 and Abdi Salim in 2019. Jay Kitcher and Matthew Stasyuk were tabbed as Third Team All-SUNYAC selections.
Neale Named Next Head Football Coach
Buffalo State has hired Mike Neale as the next head coach of the Bengals’ football program following a national search. Neale has more than two decades of coaching experience, including the past 19 years working at the Division III level, including roles as a head coach as well as a coordinator in all three phases.
Neale most recently served as the defensive coordinator at Delaware Valley for two seasons where his teams posted a record of 16-6 (.727) and his defenses ranked among the tops in the nation in several categories, including ranking second in total defense and scoring defense in 2024. Prior to Delaware Valley, Neale served one season as the special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach at Franklin College, following a seven-year stint as the head coach at Whittier College. He broke into college coaching with a nine-year run as an assistant coach with Albright College where he held titles including defensive coordinator, recruiting coordinator, special teams coordinator and also coached several position groups on both sides of the ball.
A native of San Diego, Neale got his start in coaching spending six seasons as an assistant coach at the high school level at his alma mater Valhalla High School. As a player, he enjoyed a record-setting high school career as a running back and return specialist at Valhalla. He continued his career at Grossmont College, then transferred to complete his playing career as a wide receiver at Division I Missouri State University. Neale received his bachelor’s degree in history from California State University, San Marcos in 2002.