FLUSHING, N.Y. (May 5, 2023) – On the heels of Monday's CUNYAC Community College Baseball Championship Game between Kingsborough and Bronx, the conference is excited to announce its end-of-year awards for the 2023 campaign, as voted upon by the league's head coaches.
Queensborough's Leonardo Alvarez was voted the league's Player of the Year, while Kingsborough's Nicholas Piazza was selected Rookie of the Year. Kingsborough's Francesco Bonvini was voted Pitcher of the Year for a second time in his career while Wave head coach Brian Dowd was named Coach of the Year for a second straight season.
Player of the Year: Leonardo Alvarez, Queensborough
Alvarez has been a force in the Tigers lineup this season. The sophomore is one of the nation's top hitters, ranking among the top-10 nationally in batting average (.507) and slugging percentage (.904). A two-time CUNYAC Player of the Week, Alvarez leads the team in hits, extra-base hits, home runs and runs batted in.
Rookie of the Year: Nicholas Piazza, Kingsborough
Piazza has produced a sensational rookie campaign in a Wave uniform this season, pacing Kingsborough in hits and runs scored while ranking second in runs batted in. A two-time CUNYAC Rookie of the Week and one-time Player of the Week honoree, his 45 stolen bases ranks No. 3 nationally while his five triples are ninth-most in the country.
Pitcher of the Year: Francesco Bonvini, Kingsborough
A four-time CUNYAC Pitcher of the Week honoree, Bonvini once again proved to be the top ace in the conference. The right-hander leads the country in strikeouts (103) and ranks fourth nationally in complete games (4), fifth in innings pitched (64.0) and ninth in wins (7).
Coach of the Year: Brian Dowd, Kingsborough
In his fourth season at Kingsborough, Dowd led the Wave to a perfect 12-0 record against league opponents to capture a second consecutive regular season title and third consecutive appearance in the conference championship game.
2023 CUNYAC Community College Baseball All-Star Awards
Player of the Year: Leonardo Alvarez, Queensborough
Rookie of the Year: Nicholas Piazza, Kingsborough
Pitcher of the Year: Francesco Bonvini, Kingsborough
Coach of the Year: Brian Dowd, Kingsborough
Sportsmanship Award: Gabriel Espinal, Queensborough
Sportsmanship Team: Frank Reyes, BMCC; Aldo Thomas, Kingsborough; Euniel De La Rosa, Bronx
2023 CUNYAC Community College Baseball All-Star Team
Thomas Laino, Kingsborough
Frank Reyes, BMCC
Steven Correa, Bronx
Justin Ramsey, Kingsborough
Sean Lynch, Queensborough
Christopher Jace, Kingsborough
Nicholas Mattera, BMCC
Aldo Thomas, Kingsborough
Bryan Lopez, Kingsborough
Noah Tannenbaum, Queensborough
For the latest news on the CUNY Athletic Conference, log on to cunyathletics.com – the official site of the CUNY Athletic Conference. Also, become a follower of the CUNYAC on Instagram (@CUNYAC), Twitter (@CUNYAC) and YouTube (@CUNY Athletic Conference), and "LIKE" Us on Facebook (CUNY Athletic Conference).