AMHERST, N.Y. -- The 2025-26 school year has come to a close as Daemen University Athletics celebrated the best of the best in athletics at the 2026 Night of Honors on Friday night. Each program celebrated members of their team with the Most Valuable Player, Most Improved Player and Wildcat Award honors, and the athletics department as a whole selected major award winners for Male and Female Athletes of the Year, Male and Female Newcomers of the Year, C.L.A.W. Award and the sports medicine P.R.I.D.E. Award. Here are the list of winners from each team.

Men's Basketball
Most Valuable Player -- Zach Philipkoski (New Hartford, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Phil Nwugwo (Rochester, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Jeremy Cusick (Team Impact)

Women's Basketball
Most Valuable Player -- Claire Pikett (Holland, N.Y.) and Ne'vaeh Buntley (Rochester, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Kyleigh Chapman (Canandaigua, N.Y.)

Women's Bowling
Most Valuable Player -- Brenna Forsha (Tonawanda, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Sabrina Palmer (Waterloo, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Kayla Richardson (Webster, N.Y.)

Spirit Squad
Most Valuable Player -- Peyton Johns 
Most Improved Player -- Katharine Caldwell
Wildcat Award -- Gabriella Soto

Men's Cross Country 
Most Valuable Player -- CJ Johnson (Baltimore, Md.)
Most Improved Player -- Ibrahim Hakizimana (Rochester, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Brad Tobin (Hamburg, N.Y.)

Women's Cross Country
Most Valuable Player -- Patsy Oberholzer (Greece, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Lia Brasacchio (Victor, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Madeline Straub (Olean, N.Y.)

Women's Lacrosse
Most Valuable Player -- Ella Bouley (Auburn, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Ava Brown (Port Crane, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Avery Castner (Penn Yan, N.Y.) 

Men's Soccer
Wildcat Award -- Niko Elie (Auckland, New Zealand)

Women's Soccer
Most Valuable Player -- Kylie Miranto (North Tonawanda, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Kaitlyn Wright (Geneva, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Victoria DiCarlo (North Tonawanda, N.Y.)

Men's Tennis 
Most Valuable Player -- Alex Lumanog (Albuquerque, N.M.)
Most Improved Player -- Joseph LaBrake (Tonawanda, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Mitch Pollack (Winnipeg, Man.)

Women's Tennis
Most Valuable Player -- Marley Conover (San Luis Obispo, Cali.)
Most Improved Player -- Lily Goodemote (Sauquoit, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Bella Bjerkan (Elmhurst, Ill.)

Men's Track & Field
Most Valuable Player -- Adam Kamagate (Hilton, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Zayvion Davis (Lansing, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Ethan Keating (Wooster, Ohio)

Women's Track & Field 
Most Valuable Player -- Julia Petry (Batavia, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Alana Cawthon 
Wildcat Award -- Skylar Savage (Attica, N.Y.)

Men's Volleyball
Most Valuable Player -- Billy Wieberg (Grand Island, N.Y.)
Most Improved Player -- Peter Leicht (Brockport, N.Y.)
Wildcat Award -- Jonas Drum (Hamburg, N.Y.)

Women's Volleyball
Most Valuable Player -- Nahirka Malpica (Caguas, P.R.)
Most Improved Player -- Jarielys Giraud (Orlando, Fla.)
Wildcat Award -- Molly Ryan (Orchard Park, N.Y.)

The major award winners will be announced throughout the week on daemenwildcats.com.