2021-22 Den Awards
By Brynn Abernathy, UNCBears.com
4/27/2022
The 2021-22 Den Awards were announced on April 26 to celebrate the conclusion of another great year for UNC student-athletes. Student-athletes across multiple teams were honored during the award ceremony, including Men's and Women's Basketball, Baseball, Football, Soccer, Softball, Swimming and Diving, Men's and Women's Track and Field, Volleyball, and Wrestling. The Den Awards honored a total of 19 winners in eight different categories.
The 2021-22 year brought many notable and praiseworthy moments from all of UNC Athletics. Among these successes were two Big Sky regular-season titles, one Big Sky tournament winner, UNC's first Big 12 Champion, NCAA tournament appearances, multiple WAC Championship podium finishes, various Big Sky, WAC, and school records, and lots of history made. Women's Swimming and Diving led the way with three winners from the program receiving awards thanks to outstanding individual, record-breaking performances throughout their season. 11 different teams were represented in the awards, and three student-athletes each earned two different awards.
All of the winners are featured below and fans can re-watch the Den Awards on YouTube.
Dr. George Sage Scholar Athlete of the Year Awards: Alison Zigler and Lucas Allen
SAAC Bear Leadership Awards: Sarah Jackson, Alyssa Wenzel, and Bodie Hume
Female Newcomer(s) of the Year Award: Meghan Golden - Softball
Freshman Meghan Golden's honor as Female Newcomer is much thanks to her record-breaking pitching this season. In just her first season as a Bear, Golden broke the program single-game strikeout record, striking out 15 batters to earn a complete game win against Incarnate Word. She also currently leads the team in ERA (3.66), wins (12), complete games (15), and strikeouts (132).
.@meghangoldenn with 15 STRIKEOUTS in the win!!! #GetUpGreeley???? https://t.co/v8N8UBDeRZ pic.twitter.com/cVVsGWlzUN
— UNC Bears Softball (@UNC_BearsSB) March 19, 2022
Female Newcomer(s) of the Year Award: Bryanna Ungs- Swimming and Diving
Bryanna Ungs' first year swimming for the Bears was nothing short of impressive. During the season she continually delivered podium finishes, even breaking a school record in the 100m breaststroke at the WAC Championships with a time of 1:01.60 to earn a silver medal and help the Bears earn a third place finish overall.
ANOTHER SCHOOL RECORD
— UNCBears Swim & Dive (@UNC_BearsSwim) February 26, 2022
This time is Bryanna Ungs in the 100 breast#GetUpGreeley ??????? | #WACsd pic.twitter.com/8RUhuAVHu6
Female All-Bear Team: Maddie Duren, Rachel Hickman, KJ Ince, Maddy Moore, Lexi Pulley, Hannah Simental
Six female student-athletes from four different teams were named to the Female All-Bear Team. This year's honorees include soccer's Maddie Duren and Lexi Pulley, volleyball's Rachel Hickman and KJ Ince, swimming and diving's Maddy Moore and women's basketball's Hannah Simental.
Maddie Duren, the senior defender, was a pivotal asset to soccer's success this season, tabbing 1,800 minutes of playing time, and starting each of the 20 games she played in. Duren was also credited with a goal that helped secure the Bears' win over Portland State. The captain of the defense was also named Big Sky Defensive MVP and earned a spot on the All-Big Sky First Team.
Senior Rachel Hickman, cemented herself as a central part of volleyball's offense this year. Throughout the season she received Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week Honors and was named to the All-Big Sky First Team. She tabbed 288 kills this season in 94 sets played.
Also, a notable playmaker for volleyball in 2021 was senior KJ Ince. Ince earned a major career milestone this season, eclipsing 1,000 career kills, making her only the 20th Bear in history to do so. Along with this, she picked up Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week Honors and was named to the All-Big Sky First Team.
Maddy Moore was swimming and diving's star of the 2021-22 season. Moore holds the individual school record in the 50 free, 100 free, 200 free, and 100 back. Not only was Moore a three-time WAC Swimmer of the Week this season, but also won WAC Swimmer of the Year for the second consecutive season.
Senior Lexi Pulley also had an awesome year on the soccer team. She received three Big Sky Player of the Week Honors throughout the season and was named the Big Sky Offensive MVP and landed on the All-Big Sky First Team.
Women's basketball's Hannah Simental was a critical player in the team's success in their 2021-22 season. The sophomore led the entire Big Sky from the three-point line at 41.3 percent, and the entire team in scoring, averaging 14.4 points per game. Her impressive shooting also earned her a spot on the All-Big Sky Second Team and landed her on the Big Sky All-Tournament Team.
That's our (Defensive) MVP ??#GetUpGreeley ???? pic.twitter.com/HgyqCGF2EF
— UNC Women's Soccer (@UNC_BearsSoccer) November 1, 2021
S4 | Hickman up to 14 kills on the night!!
— UNC Bears Volleyball (@UNC_BearsVB) November 21, 2021
UNC (1) - 11
WSU (2) - 8#GetUpGreeley ???? pic.twitter.com/FBYQNRaYmx
S1 | Yeah, you're not stopping that from @KaileyInce21 !!
— UNC Bears Volleyball (@UNC_BearsVB) November 18, 2021
UNC - 9
EWU - 5 #GetUpGreeley ???? pic.twitter.com/nRn4NAZew4
Make it another school record in the 100 free for Maddy Moore! It's a 49.10!!#GetUpGreeley ??????? | #WACsd pic.twitter.com/HA2D6IzW7i
— UNCBears Swim & Dive (@UNC_BearsSwim) February 27, 2022
.@hjsimental ARE YOU KIDDING??#GetUpGreeley???? pic.twitter.com/Na4Rk44XPk
— UNC Bears WBB (@UNC_BearsWBB) March 10, 2022
GOAL Lexi Pulley, her second of the match!! The Bears extend their lead to 5-2!!#GetUpGreeley pic.twitter.com/V9uDBwULiW
— UNC Women's Soccer (@UNC_BearsSoccer) October 26, 2021
Female Outstanding Athlete(s) Award: Lexi Pulley- Soccer
Lexi Pulley was virtually unstoppable for the Bears in the 2021 season. The senior led the team and the Big Sky in scoring with 12 goals on the season, winning her the Golden Boot Award. Pulley was instrumental in leading the Bears to an outright conference title and a strong run in the Big Sky Tournament. Along with all of her Big Sky honors, Pulley was also named to the United Soccer Coaches All-Region Third Team for the west region and earned All-Scholar West Region Honors as well.
That's our (Offensive) MVP ??#GetUpGreeley ???? pic.twitter.com/ItjU8NaEVF
— UNC Women's Soccer (@UNC_BearsSoccer) November 1, 2021
Female Outstanding Athlete(s) Award: Maddy Moore- Swimming and Diving
Maddy Moore set the WAC on fire this season, breaking various records, earning NCAA ‘B’ cuts, and racking up multiple gold medals. At this year's WAC Championships, Moore brought home three individual gold medals in the 50 free, 100 free, and 100 back, and a fourth as a part of the 400m relay team. Moore was a huge part of the team's success this season, helping lead them to a 3rd place overall finish at the WAC Championships. Along with this, the Bermuda native was selected to represent her home country in the FINA World Swimming Championships this year as well.
Last night, Maddy Moore posted not one but TWO national championship swims!
— UNCBears Swim & Dive (@UNC_BearsSwim) March 11, 2022
Her 22.39 in the 50 free was a meet record!!#GetUpGreeley ??????? | #WACsd pic.twitter.com/JDgceR5JOA
Male Newcomer Award: Jerome Campbell- Track and Field
Jerome Campbell has wasted no time making a name for himself as a UNC Bear. The freshman quickly got his name in the record books by breaking the 25-year-old program record in the 110m hurdles. His time of 13.84 seconds at the Colorado Invitational ranks him first in Big Sky and 31st in the nation. Campbell's historic performance also earned him Co-Big Sky Track Athlete of the Week. He also ranks in the top 10 for 100m dash.
Congrats Jerome on the Big Sky Track Athlete of the Week award!
— UNC Track&Field/XC (@UNC_BearsTFXC) April 11, 2022
?? https://t.co/H0z9sqQ5ra#GetUpGreeley???????????? pic.twitter.com/4MO9B4DQOy
Male All-Bear Team: Qwazon Al-Khaliq, Andrew Alirez, Jack Castiglia, David Hoage, Daylen Kountz
Five student-athletes from five different teams were named to this year's Male All-Bear Team. This year's honorees include Qwazon Al-Khaliq from Men's Track and Field, Andrew Alirez from Wrestling, Jack Castiglia from Men's Golf, David Hoage from Football, and Daylen Kountz from Men's Basketball.
Graduate student Qwazon Al-Khaliq wasted no time smashing the school indoor triple jump record with a mark of 16.03m at the Texas Shootout. This impressive performance earned him Big Sky Track Athlete of the Week Honors. Along with this, Al-Khaliq also won the gold medal in indoor triple jump at the Big Sky Championships. He has consistently held the No. 1 ranking in the Big Sky and continues to climb in regional and national rankings in outdoor triple jump as well.
Andrew Alirez made history for UNC Wrestling this season. In 2022, he became the Bears' first ever Big 12 Champion. The senior also qualified for his third NCAA Championship and led the team with a season record of 25-5.
Jack Castiglia led Men's Golf in average strokes all year, winning the Ram Masters Invitational. He also received Big Sky Player of the Week Honors three different times throughout the season. Castiglia was also named to the All-Big Sky First Team for the second time in his career.
Football's David Hoage had a record breaking season for Northern Colorado, breaking the program's Division I record with 10.5 sacks in a season. He was also the program's first All-American since 2015, landing on the AP, Stat Performance, and Hero Sports All-American Teams. Hoage was also named to the All-Big Sky Second Team.
Daylen Kountz was UNC Men's Basketball's go-to shooter this season. Throughout the season, Kountz racked up a total of 786 points, putting his name in the record books as the second-highest scorer in school history. He also ranked 10th in the nation for points per game, being a key player in the Bears' run to the Big Sky Championship game. The senior earned UBSWA and NABC All-District Honors, along with being a unanimous All-Big Sky First Team.
That’s a dub at Hayward for the Bears!! ???? https://t.co/azD6wqAr2w
— UNC Track&Field/XC (@UNC_BearsTFXC) April 2, 2022
A year that won’t be forgot for @andrewalirez970!
— UNC Bears Wrestling (@UNCBearsWrestle) March 19, 2022
- Program’s first Big 12 Champion
- 2nd place at the Cliff Keen
- 3rd place at the Southern Scuffle#GetUpGreeley??????? #HibernationIsOver pic.twitter.com/T7dXiN9LOa
Good luck stopping @DavidIHoage34.#GetUpGreeley ???? pic.twitter.com/0ZrYdvpvCv
— Northern Colorado FB (@UNC_BearsFB) November 6, 2021
Oh my @DaylenKountz2 has 18!#GetUpGreeley???? pic.twitter.com/xi2zWbO2hp
— UNC Men's Basketball (@UNC_BearsMBB) March 21, 2022
Outstanding Male Student-Athlete Award: Andrew Alirez- Wrestling
Outstanding Male Student-Athlete: Andrew Alirez- Wrestling
Not only did Greeley native, Andrew Alirez make history by being the first Bear to ever win a Big 12 Championship, but he also made history at the NCAA Championships. The sophomore advanced further than any Bear has in the tournament since Justin Gauthje over a decade ago. His 25-5 season record also includes a second place finish at the Cliff Keen Invitational and a third place finish at the Southern Scuffle.
.@andrewalirez970 capped off a great 2021-22 season today! #GetUpGreeley #HibernationIsOver ???? pic.twitter.com/KVx88az5lt
— UNC Bears Wrestling (@UNCBearsWrestle) March 19, 2022
Gallery: 2021-22 Den Awards
