General | 4/2/2015 3:36:00 PM

ROCHESTER, NY - RIT President Dr. Bill Destler, men's lacrosse head coach Jake Coon, and men's and women's hockey student manager Joe Vicario were honored at the 2015 Rochester Press Radio Club Day of Champions Dinner on Monday, May 4. Destler was the Morrie Silver Award Winner presented by the Rochester Red Wings, Coon, the Rochester Razor Sharks Local Coach of the Year, and Vicario, a Coca-Cola Hometown Hero.
 

Dr. Bill Destler
Since Dr. Destler became the ninth president in the 186-year history of Rochester Institute of Technology in 2007, athletics at the university have reached new heights.

The RIT men's hockey team made an incredible run to the NCAA Division I Frozen Four in 2010. Women's hockey won the NCAA Division III National Championship in 2012 and made the leap to Division I later that year. RIT's men's lacrosse team has become a perennial power, making five straight NCAA Tournament Appearances, including their first trip to the championship game in 2013. Several athletes have earned All-American honors and RIT students maintain a grade-point average of 3.2.

In 2014, under the leadership of Destler, RIT opened the $38 million, state-of-the-art Gene Polisseni Center, regarded as one of the finest hockey facilities in Division I.

At RIT, Dr. Destler is responsible for one of the nation's leading career-oriented universities. RIT's family includes 18,000 students from all 50 states and more than 100 foreign countries; 115,000 alumni across the globe; and 3,400 faculty and staff.

RIT's full-time undergraduate enrollment now ranks RIT among the top-10 largest private universities in the United States. RIT is the second largest producer of undergraduate degrees in science, technology, engineering and math among all private universities in the U.S. The university has an annual operating budget of $703 million, and an endowment of $752 million. RIT also has one of the oldest and largest cooperative education programs in the country.

Under President Destler's watch, RIT has been recognized as a leader in green initiatives (cited by the Sierra Club as one of America's 100 Greenest Universities), recognized by The Chronicle of Higher Education's "Great Colleges to Work For", and become a hub of innovation and creativity.

Jake Coon
RIT men's lacrosse head coach Jake Coon has accomplished more in six seasons then what some coaches accomplish in a career. In his six seasons at RIT men's lacrosse, Coon has led the TIgers to an amazing 106-14 record, six straight conference titles, and six straight trips to the NCAA Division III Tournament, including the Tigers first-ever appearance in the National Championship game in 2013.

Coon, the 2011 USILA and 2013 MCLA Division III Coach of the Year, has coached 32 All-Americans, 66 All-Conference selections and six straight Conference Players of the Year (Jordan MacIntosh - 2010, MJ Kiekebelt - 2011, Tyler Russell - 2012, Jack Krzyston (Bedford, NH/Bishop Guertin) – 2013, Kyle Aquin (Hamilton, Ontario/St. Jean De Brebeuf) - 2014, Ryan Lee (Sharon, Ontario/The Hill Academy) - 2015).

Last season, Coon led the Tigers to an astounding 20-1 overall record, including a 20-game winning streak, and a school record 347 goals. RIT won its third straight Liberty League Tournament title, led by 13 Liberty League All-Conference selections. In the NCAA Tournament, the Tigers defeated No. 11 Ithaca, No. 8 Union before losing to eventual National Champion, No. 6 Tufts in the semifinals. Currently, RIT is 18-0, ranked No. 1 in the USILA Division III National Poll and are set to make another long run in the NCAA Tournament. They have won 40 straight regular season contests dating back to 2013.

In 2013, he led the Tigers to a 19-3 overall record, including a 6-0 record in Liberty League play earning Liberty League Coach of the Year honors. Coon led the Tigers to a second straight Liberty League Tournament title, and in the NCAA Tournament, the Tigers defeated No. 5 Cabrini, No. 4 Tufts and No. 1 SUNY Cortland en route to reach the National Championship Game in Philadelphia, where the Tigers lost to Stevenson 16-14.

A native of Homer, NY, Coon is a strong believer in community service.  His student-athletes are some of the most active in that regard on campus, regularly volunteering by mentoring young students in the Rochester community.


Joe Vicario
Joe Vicario, fifth-year student manager for both the RIT men's and women's hockey teams, better known as "Part Time Joe" is a Coca-Cola Hometown Hero. On Feb. 7, RIT wore special jerseys that were auctioned off during the game with proceeds going to the Testicular Cancer Foundation of Western New York, which Vicario founded and the Lipson Cancer Center at Rochester General Hospital through the RIT United Way Foundation. Visit http://www.tcafofwny.org/ for more information. Over $10,000 was raised on that memorable evening.

Vicario, who suffers from Goldenhar Syndrome and is a testicular cancer survivor, is imploring men to "Check Your Pucks" which was the theme on Feb. 7. Before the game vs. Niagara that evening, Vicario who supposed to drop the ceremonial first puck, instead was given a stick by assistant captain Andrew Miller (Chicago, IL/Chicago Steel) and he took the puck drop, with the fans giving him over a minute-long standing ovation. He was also named the game's first star. Vicario was able to serve as student manager for both hockey teams that advanced to the 2015 NCAA Division I Tournament.