Bergen Athletics Celebrates Student-Athletes at 2nd Annual Barkys Awards

Bergen Athletics Celebrates Student-Athletes at 2nd Annual Barkys Awards
July 14, 2025

This year, we proudly hosted our 2nd Annual Barkys Awards, a night dedicated to celebrating the accomplishments of our Bergen student-athletes in a fun and spirited atmosphere inspired by the ESPY Awards. Held in the college's theater, the event welcomed student-athletes, coaches, administrators, families, and supporters of Bergen Athletics.

The evening kicked off with light refreshments and casual mingling in the lobby, where guests had a chance to connect—and the athletic staff had the tough job of picking out the "Best Dressed" of the night. Once the red carpet moments wrapped up, the celebration moved into the theater for an exciting awards presentation.

2025 Barkys Awards Winners

  • Scholar Team of the Year: Women's Track & Field

  • Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Tugay Bozogluer

  • Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Claude Djuge Simo

  • Comeback of the Year: Men's Soccer vs. Middlesex

  • Elaine Korinko Award: Jasmine Ramos

  • Paul J. Lynch Memorial Award: Stephanie Weise

  • Iron Bulldog Award: Valentina Botera

  • Team of the Year: Volleyball

  • Highlight of the Year (Live Voting): Kim Guaman (Women's Soccer) – Scored two goals, one to tie and one to win

  • Male Athlete of the Year: Joe Henderson

  • Female Athlete of the Year: Vivian O'Loughlin

  • Heart of a Bulldog (Male): Jalin Badillo

  • Heart of a Bulldog (Female): Jacqueline Caraballo

  • Rookie of the Year (Male): Diego Camargo

  • Rookie of the Year (Female): Oliver Arango

  • Best Dressed (Live Voting): Reymon Paulino

Academic Honors: Excellence in the Classroom

Bergen Athletics is proud to honor our student-athletes who exemplify success on the field and in the classroom through NJCAA, Region XIX, and Garden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) academic awards.

FALL 2024 Academic All-Region XIX (3.25+ GPA / 12+ Credits)

Cross Country

  • Keira McGuire

Men's Soccer

  • Tugay Bozogluer (4.0)

  • William Quedado Ferro

  • Frank Landon

  • Manuel Urquia Herrera

Women's Soccer

  • Aisha Cardona

  • Chloe Dollo

  • Nathaly Gonzalez (4.0)

  • Heidy Gonzalez Pineda

  • Michelle Gualpa (4.0)

  • Susan Hajel

  • Alyssa Montero (4.0)

  • Callia Ugas-Moy

  • Derya Nur Arslan (4.0)

Women's Volleyball

  • Angela Korca

  • Addy Matos

  • Katie Pieretti (4.0)

  • Julia Semon

WINTER 2024–25 Academic All-Region XIX

Men's Basketball

  • Matthew Kelleher

  • Evan Meberg

  • Louis Sosa

Women's Basketball

  • Jacqueline Caraballo (4.0)

  • Claude Djuge Simo (4.0)

  • Jahvenne Joseph

  • Sonja Syla

Wrestling

  • Joshua Alvarez (4.0)

  • Anthony Caruso

  • Ty Pfeufer

  • Paul Mielke

SPRING 2025 Academic All-Region XIX

Baseball

  • Danny Izquierdo

  • Seungwoo Jeon

  • Chris Merrill

  • Tyler Mertz (4.0)

  • Brandon Rivas

  • Kevin Soltys

Softball

  • Jacqueline Caraballo

  • Mary Palazzo (4.0)

  • Elizabeth Vanderbeek

Track & Field

  • Joseph Altieri

  • Jalin Badillo

  • Eugenio Barrales

  • Diego Camargo

  • Anastasia Heiden

  • Hemang Patel

  • Regev Rikin (4.0)

  • Callia Ugas-Moy (4.0)

GSAC Academic Honors (3.0+ GPA / 12+ Credits)

Fall 2024

Men's Soccer

  • Paolo Gatto

  • Thierry Njeta

  • Cristian Perez

Women's Soccer

  • Alexandra Hernandez

Wrestling

  • Alex Gossin

Spring 2025

Men's Basketball

  • Josh Brown

Wrestling

  • Alex Gossin

  • Jeremiah Wynn

Baseball

  • Cesar Peguero

  • Justin Ramos

Softball

  • Abriana Rios

Track & Field

  • Josh Brown

  • Hannah Otterstedt

  • Abriana Rios

NJCAA All-Academic Teams

First Team (4.00 GPA / 24+ Credits)

  • Nathaly Gonzalez – 25 cr. (Women's Soccer)

  • Michelle Gualpa – 26 cr. (Women's Soccer)

  • Alyssa Montoro – 28 cr. (Women's Soccer)

  • Tyler Mertz – 29 cr. (Baseball)

Second Team (3.80–3.99 GPA / 24+ Credits)

  • Tugay Bozogluer – 24 cr., 3.94 GPA

  • Heidy Gonzalez Pineda – 25 cr., 3.94 GPA

  • Callia Ugas-Moy – 30 cr., 3.80 GPA

  • Katie Pieretti – 20 cr., 3.90 GPA*

  • Julia Semon – 27 cr., 3.94 GPA

  • Matthew Kelleher – 31 cr., 3.84 GPA

  • Christopher Merrill – 23 cr., 3.83 GPA*

  • Seungwoo Jeon – 27 cr., 3.89 GPA

  • Jacqueline Caraballo – 23 cr., 3.83 GPA*

  • Mary Palazzo – 30 cr., 3.93 GPA

  • Regev Rikin – 28 cr., 3.87 GPA

Third Team (3.60–3.79 GPA / 24+ Credits)

  • Manuel Urquia Herrera – 24 cr., 3.62 GPA

  • Joshua Alvarez – 30 cr., 3.62 GPA

  • Kevin Soltys – 29 cr., 3.60 GPA

  • Anastasia Heiden – 29 cr., 3.74 GPA

Congratulations to all our award winners and academic honorees! Your hard work, commitment, and Bulldog pride make Bergen Athletics a true powerhouse on and off the field.