Student Athletes Honored at Summit Boosters Banquet

The Summit Boosters Association held the 27th annual Senior Athletes Banquet on Wednesday, May 21, at The Grand Summit Hotel. Over 300 students, coaches and parents gathered to celebrate the athletes' accomplishments on and off the playing fields.  

The evening kicked off with the presentation of the Hilltopper Appreciation Award given to Jim Dietz, who retired last year from teaching at Summit High School after coaching football and basketball for over twenty years.  The award recognized Dietz's countless years of support to Summit athletics. 

One-hundred forty-two student athletes from the 2013 graduating class received a plaque in recognition of their participation in a varsity sport as an athlete, manager or statistician.  

The highlight of the evening was the presentation of the 2013 Howard S. Anderson Scholarships, named in honor of the longtime coach, teacher and athletic director at Summit High School.  The Summit Booster Association presented each winner with a $1,500 scholarship.  The students are chosen by the high school coaches based on outstanding athletic ability, academic achievement and strong leadership and sportsmanship abilities.  To be eligible, students must be in the upper half of their graduating class. 

This year’s winners are: 

• Rebecca Cummings-XC, winter track and field, spring track and field captain. Will attend The College of New Jersey
• Kirsten Gargiulo-XC, winter track and field captain, spring track and field. Will attend The College of the Holy Cross
• Catherine Humphrey-soccer captain, ice hockey captain, lacrosse captain. Will attend Duke University
• Tasha Kewalramani-tennis captain, swimming captain, softball captain. Will attend Cornell University
• Nick Abbott-soccer captain, wrestling captain, baseball captain. Will be attending Bucknell University
• William Austin Fern-winter track and field captain, spring track and field captain. Will attend The College of New Jersey
• Anthony Iarussi-football captain, wresting captain. Will be attending The University of Pennsylvania
• Nick Liberato-football captain. Will be attending Sacred Heart University

Since its inception in the 1950s, Summit Boosters has been a parent-run, non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance Summit Public Schools’ athletic programs.   This year the Boosters provided a record $80,000 in funding for the teams at Summit High School and LCJ Summit Middle School.  For more information about Boosters, visit summitboostersnj.org.