The State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) has announced its postseason awards for Men's Indoor Track & Field.  Honored were SUNY Oneonta senior J.D. Roth (Pearl River/Nanuet) as the Field Athlete of the Year and Angelo Posillico as the Coach of the Year.
 
Posillico is earning Coach of the Year honors for the first time indoors and second time overall.  Posillico earned outdoor honors this past spring after directing the Red Dragons to its first outdoor conference title.  This past weekend, he orchestrated a runaway championship, as the men won their second indoor title in the last three years.  The men scored 152 points, outdistancing second place SUNY Cortland by 42 points.  The Red Dragons finished the regular season ranked 23^rd in Division III.
 
"The coach of the year award is an honor that I am very appreciative to receive," said Posillico.  "It's important to remember that I have four other coaches on my staff who were as big a part in this championship as I was. We had a lot of ups and downs this indoor season, and what means the most to me is how these thirty-nine men came together at the end. There wasn't a louder, more positive team in the building last weekend, and that says a lot about the culture of the student-athletes we have here at Oneonta. I am exceptionally appreciative of the seniors on this team, and because of the tradition they have helped me to create, we will have every opportunity to repeat as champions next year."
 
Roth is earning the indoor Field Athlete of the Year for a second consecutive year.  Roth collected 18 points this past weekend at the SUNYAC championships.  He won the shot put and was second in the weight throw.  His performances earned him First Team All-Conference honors.
 
Roth won his first indoor SUNYAC title in the shot put with a facility record distance of 16.50m (54'1 ¾").  Roth earned another medal in the weight throw with his second place finish in the event (17.94m, 58'10 ¼").
 
"I'm really proud of J.D. and the way he competed at the SUNYAC Championships," stated Posillico.  "He was struggling during the first four rounds of the shot put, but remained confident and went big on his final two throws. The Field Athlete of the Year award is a huge honor, but the leadership I saw from J.D. over the last few weeks was just as valuable to his team as the 18 points he scored. As it stands, he will be competing in the shot put and weight throw at the national championships, so there are still many goals left to accomplish this season."
 
The Red Dragons will be at the Armory in New York City this weekend to compete in the 2015 ECAC Division III Championships.  Last winter, Oneonta finished tied for third place.