Men's Soccer | 6/10/2026 2:40:00 PM

NEWARK, NJ – The Rutgers University-Newark Athletics Department has announced its Male & Female Athlete of the Year and Rookie of the Year honorees for the 2025-26 season. A year filled with standout performances across multiple sports led to four exceptional student-athletes earning some of the department's highest individual honors.

Each year at the Rutgers-Newark Awards Banquet, nominees are recognized for the department's major individual awards. The nominees for Male Rookie of the Year were baseball's Jonathan Jerez, men's volleyball's Duncan Sturt, and men's basketball's Raheem Murray. On the women's side, the nominees were women's soccer's Keliah Cottrell, women's volleyball's Cyan Long, and women's soccer's Shaina Sackett.

This year's nominees for Male Athlete of the Year were men's volleyball's Aleks Kolodziej, men's soccer's Erick Cortes, and men's volleyball's Michael Suarez. On the women's side, the nominees were women's track & field's Fejiro Akiri, women's soccer's Emily Karlicki, and women's track & field's Shanil Auguste.

Raheem Murray was named Rutgers-Newark Male Rookie of the Year after making an immediate impact for the Scarlet Raiders men's basketball program. The guard led the team in scoring with 15.0 points per game, ranking ninth in the NJAC. Murray earned NJAC Rookie of the Week honors three times during the season and capped off his impressive debut campaign by earning All-NJAC Honorable Mention recognition.

Cyan Long earned Rutgers-Newark Female Rookie of the Year honors following a strong all-around season for the Scarlet Raiders women's volleyball team. Long finished the year with over 100 kills, 164 points, and 362 digs, with her digs total ranking ninth in the NJAC. Her contributions on both offense and defense helped establish her as one of the team's key performers throughout the season.

Erick Cortes was named Rutgers-Newark Male Athlete of the Year after producing one of the finest seasons in recent Scarlet Raider men's soccer history. The standout forward finished second in the NJAC with 16 goals and recorded five game-winning goals throughout the campaign. Cortes earned First Team All-NJAC honors, First Team All-ECAC recognition, CSC Academic All-District accolades, and All-Region IV honors while leading the Scarlet Raiders attack from start to finish.

Fejiro Akiri was selected as Rutgers-Newark Female Athlete of the Year after another dominant season in track & field. During the indoor season, Akiri captured the NJAC Championship in the weight throw to earn First Team All-NJAC honors. She followed that performance with a bronze-medal finish in the shot put during the outdoor season, earning All-NJAC Honorable Mention recognition. Akiri's success throughout the year continued to cement her place among the conference's top field athletes.

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