NEW YORK – Xavier men’s swimming freestyle standout Alex Wolfred and Xavier women’s soccer starting defender Carly Alfano have been chosen as the winners of the 2017-18 BIG EAST Michael Tranghese Postgraduate Leadership Award, as selected by the BIG EAST Conference Academic Affairs Committee.
The awards are given to one male and one female student-athlete from a BIG EAST-sponsored sport who have been admitted to a degree-granting or professional program for the following academic year and who have demonstrated leadership through excellence in academic credentials, athletic performance and depth of commitment to service within the institution or the community.
Wolfred and Alfano will each receive a $5,000 scholarship, which may be applied to postgraduate study. The award is named for Michael Tranghese, the BIG EAST’s first full-time employee who served as commissioner of the conference from 1990 to 2009 and embodied leadership and dedication from the league’s inception.
Wolfred and Alfano are the third and fourth student-athletes from Xavier to earn the awards. It is the first time the Michael Tranghese awards were given to the same institution. Wolfred will be pursuing his graduate degree in Health Services Administration at Xavier. Alfano plans to pursue a career in medicine and is currently in the process of selecting a medical school.
“In addition to success on the field, excellent academic performance is also one of the pillars that the BIG EAST Conference is built on,” remarked BIG EAST Commissioner Val Ackerman. “Alex and Carly are exceptional student-athletes who are living proof of how athletics and academics go hand-in-hand. We wish them the best of luck in their future academic and professional pursuits.”
Wolfred, a Noblesville, Ind., native, is a four-year student-athlete on the Xavier swimming. He is a three-time BIG EAST Championship silver medalist (500 freestyle relay, 800 freestyle relay and 1,650 freestyle relay) and a three-time All-BIG EAST swimmer. Wolfred also won the bronze medal for Xavier in the 500-yard freestyle as a sophomore in 2016. In 2018, Wolfred scored key points for the Musketeers in the 200, 500 and 1,650 freestyle individual events as well as part of the 800 freestyle relay team. Wolfred swam on back-to-back BIG EAST Champion teams (2015, 2016). Academically, Wolfred boasts a 3.97 undergraduate GPA in health services administration. He is a three-time member of the BIG EAST All-Academic Team. In 2016 and 2017 Wolfred was the Top Scholar for the Xavier Men’s Swim Team. He is a member of the Alpha Sigma Nu Jesuit Honors Society and won the “Thinker Award” as the top scholar in the health services administration department. Wolfred is also a leader in the community as he is a member of Xavier’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council and Xavier’s Chapter of Institute for Healthcare Improvement. He has volunteered as a participant of the Down Syndrome Association Buddy Walk, the Rubber Duck Regatta Clean-Up for Freestore Foodbank Cincinnati and the Ohio Special Olympics Swimming Championships.
Alfano, from Belle River, Ontario, has been a starter on Xavier’s women’s soccer team since her freshman year in 2014. As a senior, the defender earned All-Midwest Region Third Team honors from the United Soccer Coaches, was a member of the All-BIG EAST Second Team and was named First Team All-Ohio. Off the pitch and in the classroom, Alfano excelled with a perfect 4.0 GPA as a biology major with a minor in chemistry and deaf studies. Alfano was a three-time BIG EAST All-Academic Team honoree and was a two-time member of the Academic All-Ohio First Team. She was named to the 2017 CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team. Within Xavier, she was awarded the Dr. J.T. Clear Award for the highest GPA among senior biology students. In the community, Alfano has been a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee since 2016. She has served on the Executive Board and as Community Services Coordinator. Alfano was a delegate for the NCAA Division I APPLE Training Institute in 2017 and has served as a mentor for the Academy of World Languages. To enhance her pursuit of a postgraduate medical career, Alfano volunteered as part of the University of Cincinnati Medical Center Cardiovascular Recovery Unit, Windsor Essex Community Healthcare Chronic Disease Management program and LaSalle Community Health Care Family Medical Practice.
The Michael Tranghese Postgraduate Leadership award is one of a number of scholarships presented by the BIG EAST Conference during the 2017-18 academic year. In addition to this award, which was introduced for the 2010-11 academic year, 20 student-athletes (one male and one female from each of the BIG EAST’s 10 member institutions) have been named as the winners of the BIG EAST Institutional Scholar-Athlete Scholarships. The conference also names male and female BIG EAST Basketball Scholar-Athletes of the Year.
Michael Tranghese Postgraduate Leadership Award
2018
Alex Wolfred, Xavier, Swimming
Carly Alfano, Xavier, Women’s Soccer
2017
Harrison Lang, Creighton, Men’s Tennis
Caroline Hamilton, Villanova, Track & Field
2016
Zachary Mueck, Xavier, Men’s Tennis
Emily Cubbage, St. John’s, Women’s Soccer
2015
Shawn Heide, St. John’s, Baseball
Shelby Manthorpe, Seton Hall, Volleyball
2014
James Roebker, Xavier, Tennis
Chloe Sher, Seton Hall, Tennis
2013
Michael Moore, Notre Dame, Tennis
Kaci Madden, Rutgers, Softball
2012
Benjamin Forrest, Rutgers, Cross Country/Track & Field
Allison Schroeder, Notre Dame, Cross Country/Track & Field
2011
Tyler Davis, Notre Dame, Tennis
Amy Zhang, Rutgers, Tennis