Delaware Athletics Holds 2026 Hennies

Jordan Skolnick, Katie Scheivert, Matvei Namakonov, Dr. Laura Carlson

Photo by: Mikey Reeves

5/13/2026 6:37:00 PM | Baseball, Field Hockey, Football, Men's Basketball, Men's Golf, Men's Lacrosse, Men's Soccer, Men's Swimming & Diving, Men's Tennis, Softball, Women's Basketball, Women's Cross Country, Women's Golf, Women's Soccer, Women's Swimming & Diving, Women's Tennis, Volleyball, Women's Lacrosse, Rowing, Delaware Athletics, SAAC, Track & Field, Cheer, Dance, Ice Hockey

NEWARK, Del. – University of Delaware Athletics held its annual Hennies Awards event on Tuesday, May 12 inside the Bob Carpenter Center. The event, which is led by the department's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), highlights the achievements of all athletic and spirit programs, including honoring several student-athletes.

Katie Scheivert and Matvei Namakonov claimed the evening's highest honors as the Mary Ann Hitchens and Edgar Johnson award winners, respectively. The awards are presented to a graduating female and male senior letterwinner who have exhibited the qualities of hard work, dedication, leadership, fairness, and striving for excellence.

Mary Ann Hitchens was a pioneer for women's competitive athletics when she was a coach and administrator at UD for nearly 40 years. Hitchens was a student when competitive opportunities did not exist for women, but made an impressive impact upon returning to UD as a professional and has been inducted into four halls of fame.

Scheivert starred for Delaware's softball program during one of its most successful eras. She played and started in every game of her career, reaching milestones of 200 career hits and 100 runs scored, while appearing in the second-most games of any Delaware player in program history at 211. The Leesburg, Va. native also ranks among the program's all-time statistical leaders, sitting in the top 15 in career batting average and on-base percentage, top 10 in doubles, and top five in stolen bases. She is the seventh player in program history to hit at least .300 in all four collegiate seasons, and one of just two players to score four runs in a game twice. A two-time CSC Academic All-District and three-time Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete honoree, she earned Second Team All-CUSA as a senior, Second Team All-CAA as a junior, and CAA All-Rookie Team as a freshman. Off the field, Scheivert served as SAAC Vice President as a senior and played an active role in community service initiatives. Scheivert will graduate with a degree in sport management.

Edgar Johnson spent over 50 years representing UD as a swimming student-athlete, a multi-sport coach, and eventually the athletic director for 25 years. Over a span of five decades, few individuals have devoted as much time and talent to University of Delaware Athletics as Johnson, and he continues to celebrate the department today as a Fightin' Blue Hen fan.

Namakonov made his mark on the Delaware men's swimming & diving program during his four years in Newark. The first athletic All-American in program history and two-time CSC Academic All-America recipient rewrote the record book in sprint events. A six-time member of the CAA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll, and part of the 2025-26 ASUN All-Academic Team, Namakonov will graduate with a degree in physics, with a concentration in astrophysics, achieving a near-perfect GPA. The first back-to-back NCAA qualifier in program history and first to make an NCAA A Final holds eight program records at the time of matriculation and has 39 top-10 times.

Football's Nick Minicucci and women's swimming & diving's Victoria Novinskiy were named the Outstanding Male and Female Athletes of the Year, which is presented annually to one male and one female student-athlete who have demonstrated the highest level of athletic excellence throughout the course of their respective seasons and during this academic year

Minicucci, a 2025 Second Team All-CUSA selection and Offensive MVP of the 68 Ventures Bowl, spearheaded the Fightin' Blue Hen's offense that finished with a bowl win in its first FBS season. In 2025, Minicucci led CUSA in passing yards (3,683), completions (322), attempts (512), passing yards/game (283.3), total offense (3,918), and total offense per game (301.4). He connected with 10+ receivers in seven games, eight or more in 10 of 13 games, and seven in all 12 regular season games. On the ground, the signal caller tied for fourth in the conference with 10 rushing touchdowns. Minicucci is the second QB in program history with 20 passing TDs and 10 rushing TDs (first since 1969). The Midland Park, N.J. native ranked among the nation's best in passing yards (second), total yards (fourth), pass yards per game (eighth), and total yards per game (ninth).

Novinskiy became the first women's swimmer in program history to compete in the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships in March 2026. She helped the Fightin' Blue Hens to its first ASUN Championship in program history, and first overall since 1997 with her three NCAA standard races and four podium finishes at the championships. In the 100-butterfly, the No. 1 ranked women's swimmer in the ASUN according to SwimCloud rankings broke the program record en route to qualifying for the NCAA Championships at 51.92. With times meeting the NCAA standard along with first-place finishes in both the 200-butterfly and 200-IM, Novinskiy earned a spot in the championships in both of those swims as well. She competed in the NCAA Championships in the 100 and 200-yard butterfly, finishing with times of 52.68 and 1:59.25, respectively.

Football's 68 Ventures Bowl championship claimed the department's Team Performance of the Year. UD defeated Louisiana 20-13 at Hancock Whitney Stadium in the 68 Ventures Bowl on December 17, 2025. The Fightin' Blue Hens closed their first FBS season at 7-6, 4-4 CUSA, becoming the second team all-time to win a bowl game in its first FBS season, joining Conference USA foe Jax State in 2023. Delaware swept the game's MVP awards: RB Jo Silver (Overall MVP), QB Nick Minicucci (Offensive MVP), CB Nate Evans (Defensive MVP), and K Nate Reed (Special Teams MVP).

The Individual Performance of the Year, which is presented to an individual, doubles team, or relay team, went to Tobey Lock and Euan Mackenzie after the pair made history for the Delaware men's tennis program in November 2025 when they won the ITA Northeast Regional, qualifying for the NCAA Doubles Tournament. The duo is the first in program history to make an appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 1974, and first in the doubles portion. They defeated Bucknell, Temple, Columbia, twice, Princeton, and Penn in six-straight matches. Lock and Mackenzie competed closely against No. 5/8 TCU in the round-of-32, playing to a tiebreaker in the second set. In the November 25 ITA National Rankings, they picked up the highest ranking by a pair in program history at No. 35 in the country.

The Chuck Hall Strength & Conditioning Award, which is presented annually to one male and one female student-athlete who not only displays maximum effort on and off the field of competition, but also brings out the best in his/her teammates through a positive attitude, relentless work ethic and consistent commitment to performance enhancement, went to football's Jo Silver and ice hockey's Tiana McIntyre.

The B+ Foundation Award went to cheer's Gina McGhee. The honor is presented annually to a student-athlete who has gone above and beyond in their effort and passion for the B-positive foundation every single day.

Rowing's Amina Mai claimed the Community Advocacy Award, which recognizes a student-athlete who has gone above and beyond to give back—using their platform, time, and passion to make a real impact in the community.

Each team also had a winner in the 302 Award, which goes to the student-athlete in each program that embodies the definition of a Fightin' Blue Hen: One who leads; one with aspirations of championship caliber. To be strong, focused and dedicated; to be passionate and inspiring; to be part of a family. Those winners were:

Gina McGhee - All-Girl Cheer
Doug Marose - Baseball
Tyler Houser - Men's Basketball
Michael Najburg - Men's Golf
Jason Kolar - Men's Lacrosse
Mikey Johnson - Men's Soccer
Dylan Smolders - Men's Swimming & Diving
Tobey Lock - Men's Tennis
Gwen Cinquemani - Coed Cheer
Rachel Starr - Cross Country
Sammi Bigioni - Dance
Noelle Sabbagh - Field Hockey
Ethan Saunders - Football
Kaitlin Finnegan - Ice Hockey
Kathleen Higgins - Rowing
Katie Scheivert - Softball
Brody Martin - Spirit
Lauren Leath - Track & Field
Asia Murray - Volleyball
Ella Wanzer - Women's Basketball
Marissa Malosh - Women's Golf
McKenzie Didio - Women's Lacrosse
Constanze Viehmann - Women's Soccer
Elishka Hajek - Women's Swimming & Diving
Katie Dollens - Women's Tennis

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