The 2023 Swords Awards were held on Tuesday night, celebrating another successful academic and athletic year by UCF student-athletes.
The annual tradition of recognizing the Knights for their accomplishments in and out of competition saw student-athletes, coaches, staff and members of the Shareholders Society gather at Addition Financial Arena.
The first award of the evening was the Freshman of the Year, which recognized one male and one female true or redshirt freshmen student-athlete making significant contributions to the team by demonstrating outstanding work ethic and high performance in the classroom and field of play. Women's golf's Pimpisa "Sandwich" Sisutham and men's basketball's Taylor Hendricks were tabbed as the 2023 recipients.
The Newcomer of the Year recognizes a first-year transfer student-athlete who makes significant contributions to the team by demonstrating outstanding work ethic and high performance in the classroom and field of play. The 2023 honorees were Abby Hansen (volleyball) and John Rhys Plumlee (football and baseball).
The Iron Knight award, which is awarded to a female and male student-athlete who leads by example, gives maximum effort, and is a top performer in the weight room, went to softball's Shannon Doherty and men's soccer's Robbie Soronellas.
The Heart of the Knight is awarded to the student-athlete who is the true embodiment of a team player, as exemplified by the contribution and inspiration provided to the team. The 2023 recipients were Nandini Sharma (women's tennis) and Samuel Jackson (football).
Recognizing student-athletes who have excelled in the classroom, in the field of play and in the community, the Noble Knight was also awarded to Sharma (women's tennis) and Garrett O'Malley (Knightro).
The Shareholder's Society Donor of the Year was awarded to Tony and Sonja Nicholson.
The Dr. Bill Callarman Perseverance Award, which is named after UCF's former NCAA Faculty Representative. The award recognizes a graduating student-athlete whose determination and perseverance in overcoming obstacles academically, athletically, or even personally, is a testament to their tremendous character. Women's basketball's Kiera Brown and football's RJ Harvey were the 2023 recipients.
The Dr. Richard Lapchick Servant Leader Award, which measures both athletic and academic achievements, along with community service, was presented to Jada Cody (softball) and Paul Rubelt (football).
The softball team earned the Excalibur Cup Award for the fourth consecutive year, which encompasses great community service, leadership development, academic and athletic excellence and support and pride for their peers' events.
Volleyball took home the highest female team GPA (3.68), while the men's golf team held the highest male team GPA (3.54) with each winning for the second consecutive year.
Named after Dr. John C. Hitt, who served as UCF's president for 26 years, the Scholar-Athlete of the Year recognizes a graduating student-athlete who exemplifies outstanding scholarly achievement through excellence in academics, leadership, participation, and performance. Rayniah Jones (track and field) and Jason Johnson (football) were the 2023 honorees.
Leading her squad to its second consecutive American Athletic Indoor Championship, Dana Boone was named the Swords Awards Coach of the Year.
The inaugural Linda Gooch "Dedicated Knight" Award was presented Cameron Baisden, a member of the UCF cheer team.
The Athlete of the Year is awarded to the student-athlete making the greatest contribution to the team in excellence, leadership, participation and performance. The 2023 recipients were track and field's Jones and Hendricks of men's basketball.
The evening concluded with the Moment of the Year, which was voted on by UCF student-athletes. The track and field team's 2023 American Athletic Conference indoor championship took home the women's honor, while the men's basketball team's double overtime victory against Memphis took the top honor on the men's side.
The following is a look at the awards that were handed out Tuesday night:
Freshman of the Year
Female: Pimpisa "Sandwich" Sisutham, Women's Golf
Male: Taylor Hendricks, Men's Basketball
Newcomer of the Year
Female: Abby Hansen, Volleyball
Male: John Rhys Plumlee, Football & Baseball
Iron Knight
Female: Shannon Doherty, Softball
Male: Robbie Soronellas, Men's Soccer
Heart of the Knight
Female: Nandini Sharma, Women's Tennis
Male: Samuel Jackson, Football
Noble Knight
Female: Nandini Sharma, Women's Tennis
Male: Garrett O'Malley, Cheer (Knightro)
Shareholders Society Donor of the Year
Tony and Sonja Nicholson
Dr. Bill Callarman Perseverance Award
Female: Kiera Brown, Women's Basketball
Male: RJ Harvey, Football
Dr. Richard Lapchick Servant Leader Award
Female: Jada Cody, Softball
Male: Paul Rubelt, Football
Linda Gooch "Dedicated Knight" Award
Cameron Baisden, Cheer
Excalibur Cup
Softball
Highest Team GPA
Volleyball
Men's Golf
Dr. John C. Hitt Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Female: Rayniah Jones, Track & Field
Male: Jason Johnson, Football
Coach of the Year
Dana Boone, Track & Field
Athlete of the Year
Female: Rayniah Jones, Track & Field
Male: Taylor Hendricks, Men's Basketball
Moment of the Year
Female: Track and Field wins second consecutive AAC Indoor Championship
Male: Men's basketball double-overtime victory against Memphis