ALBANY, NY –The Sage College's department of athletics gathered to recognize and honor the outstanding performances of the 2015-2016 year with the naming of the athletic award winners for the 15 varsity athletic teams. In addition to awarding the Gator Award, for the Most Outstanding Player, the department also named the 2015-2016 Female and Male Athletes of the Year, the Dean Sharon Robinson Senior Male and Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year, which is given to the senior student-athlete with the highest overall grade point average.

The Sage Colleges' men's volleyball, sophomore Casey Fitzpatrick (Haverhill, MA/Haverhill) was named the Gator of the Year.

Head coach Bob Verhayden said of Fitzpatrick, "Sophomore Robert "Casey" Fitzpatrick changed positions this year from libero to setter for the overall betterment of the team. Casey ran our offense at a very high level and provided numerous assists to  First Team Skyline Conference player Ryan Guyton (Lockport, NY/Lockport) and Second Team All-Skyline Conference player Bailey Cecchi (Agawam, MA/Agawam). When he wasn't setting, Casey was still on the court as an outside hitter, opposite, or libero. He was just too valuable to have him sitting on the bench."

Fitzpatrick was instrumental on both ends of the court as a strong offensive and defensive player. He was tied with freshman Austin Laverty (Schenectady, NY/Mohonasen) for the most sets played (116). The sophomore averaged 6.16 assists, 1.62 digs, .90 points, .54 kills, .23 blocks and .20 aces per set. Fitzpatrick was named to the Skyline Conference Second-Team as a freshman at libero.

In two short years, Fitzpatrick already ranks in the Sage record books for career assists (2nd, 751), single-season assists (3rd, 714), career assists per set (3.68), career digs (5th, 422), single-season digs per set (5th, 2.66), single-season sets played (5th, 116), single-season assists per set (7th, 6.16), single-season digs (7th, 234) career sets played (8th, 204) career matches played (8th, 62) and career aces (9th, 39).

A business major, Fitzpatrick has been named to the Skyline Conference Scholar-Athlete Team and the Sage Dean's List.