2018 Coach Sheahan Excellence Award Winners
Nicole Dao '19 and Eileen Dinn '19
The Academy presented the Coach Sheahan Excellence Award to Eileen Dinn '19 and Nicole Dao '19 on Tuesday, May 22, during the Underclass Awards Ceremony. This is the first time the award has been presented to two recipients in the award's six-year history. The award, given as a surprise to the recipient, is named after the late Bill Sheahan, who coached the Academy's basketball team to its 115-game winning streak and enjoyed a 27-year relationship with the Academy. The award that is presented to a rising senior who exemplifies the values that Coach Sheahan ascribed to in his own life and coaching style: A Christ-centered life, a devotion to family, a conscientious student, a leader and person of integrity and commitment who is loyal to herself, her school, and her community. The award includes a scholarship towards tuition.
Eileen was nominated by Lacrosse coach Katie Triplin who wrote, "In her interactions with peers and teammates, [Eileen] stands for positivity, friendship, and love... she is always there to uplift her teammates. She is dedicated to the success of her team and is committed to being a kind and compassionate friend to her teammates.. All the while demanding their very best effort. She is a leader and ambassador for many causes that represent decency, fairness, and good principal." In addition to Lacrosse, Eileen plays on the Field Hockey and Ice Hockey teams.
Nicole was nominated by Volleyball coach David Geiser who wrote, "[Nicole] is a young women at peace with herself and her environment...a wonderful athlete, a hard-working scholar, a natural and curious learner, and an individual committed to serving her family, her classmates, her community, and God. She is the on-court leader, who calls the plays, runs the offense, and makes key decisions. She is the player on the team who is on time, focused, works hard, encourages others and is willing to put in the extra hours to study game film to ensure her team is successful. [She is] an honest person with a clear set of moral values. She consistently demonstrates a high professional standard for her interactions with her teammates and classmates." Nicole is also a member of the AHC Transformers Robotics team coached by David Geiser.
Athletic Director Dena Rapoport announced the award and included a remark from last year's recipient, Jeasmine Ebessa '18, who noted, "Receiving recognition for the simplest of things like hard work, dedication, and kindness made me feel like it was all worth it."