MIDDLESEX COLLEGE ATHLETICS CELEBRATES ANOTHER GREAT YEAR AT ANNUAL COLTS ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
Middlesex College Athletics held its annual Colts Achievement Awards ceremony and honored the fantastic accomplishments of the department's student-athletes and coaches from the 2025-2026 school year.
"I have been so impressed by the accomplishments of our students and teams in the five years I have been here at Middlesex College," said Director of Athletics Rocco Constantino, who served as the host for the evening. "I never know how we're going to top the previous year, but our athletes and coaches always seem to rise to the occasion. I am very proud of what they've been able to do."
The evening started with a welcome from College President, Dr. Mark McCormick and then went into a slideshow presentation of highlights and honors from the past school year.
Among the accomplishments lauded were the fact that four Colts teams participated in the NJCAA Region 19 playoffs with the Men's Basketball and Men's Soccer teams advancing to the semifinals. It was also noted that the Baseball team finished third in the Region 19 Tournament.
They also recognized nine student-athletes who received All-Region 19 honors this year as well as the 13 All Garden State Athletic Conference honorees.
Baseball Head Coach CJ Mooney was also recognized for his 300th career coaching win and the baseball team as a whole was honored for setting a school record with 38 wins.
After the team honors portion of the evening, Constantino presented the five major departmental awards. The awards presented were as follows:
VINCENT DeSARIO AWARD
Named for Middlesex College golf student-athlete Vincent DeSario who passed away in 2010, the award is presented to a student-athlete for academic and athletic excellence. This year's recipient is Genilah Singleton from the Women's Basketball team. Genilah was known as a team leader both on and off the court and excelled in the classroom as well.
SHANNON WILLIAMS COLTS SPIRIT AWARD
Named in honor of longtime Middlesex College Equipment Aide who passed away suddenly in 2022, this year's recipient was John Oranchak from the baseball team. All of the candidates were truly deserving, but Oranchak stood out in a number of areas. A three-time nominee for the Shannon Williams Award, Oranchak has been a leader and role model since he first arrived at Middlesex College as a freshman. An All-Region 19 outfielder, Oranchak represented the athletics department and baseball team at a number of campus and community events during his time as a Colt. He has also worked in the college's fitness center for over two years.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Voted on by the department's coaches and staff, this year's winner was Head Baseball Coach CJ Mooney. Coach Mooney led Middlesex to a 38-17 record and a third place finish in the Region 19 Tournament. Their 38 wins set a new school record. This was the 5th straight season the program reached 30 wins and a top 10 national ranking--national powers Brookdale & RCSJ-Gloucester are the only other two schools in Region 19 to have done that. Middlesex Baseball finished with a #10 ranking in this year's final regular season NJCAA National Poll. They won regular season series against then national #1 RCSJ-Gloucester, #8 Brookdale CC and #14 RCSJ-Cumberland. The team won 11 games against teams that had been ranked in the top 15 nationally at one point this season. Coach Mooney also became the second Middlesex College Baseball coach to reach 300 career wins this year.
MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Voted on by the department's coaches and staff, this year's winner was Ryan Acquisto from the baseball team. After breaking his ankle in 2025, Acquisto returned and picked up where he left off as one of the best hitters in the country. He hit safely in 44 of 55 games this year with 20 multi-hit games. Acquisto ranked #24 nationally with 72 hits overall. He was ranked nationally in many offensive categories including #16 in RBIs (62), #22 in runs scored (69), #30 in walks (35) and #37 in total bases (109). Acquisto was also a national Gold Glove nominee at first base and was the program's first two-time Team MVP.
FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Voted on by the department's coaches and staff, this year's winner is Kylie Rackett from the softball team. Rackett wasn't just a leader on offense for the Colts as a freshman, she was also a workhorse pitcher for the club. Rackett appeared in 25 of the Colts 33 games as a pitcher, starting 18 of them. Her 123 innings pitched ranked #17 in the country in the regular season. On offense, she ranked #3 overall in the country with 64 runs scored. Rackett also ranked #36 nationally with 48 hits, and #15 overall with a .567 on base percentage. Her .466 batting average was the 8th highest batting average among the 108 players in the country with at least 100 at bats. Incredibly, Rackett struck out just one time all season across 126 plate appearances.