BENNINGTON, Vt. — On Monday, the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) announced its yearly award winners for the 2015-16 men's basketball season with Southern Vermont College seniors DeShawn Hamlet (Hartford, Conn.) and Casey Hall (Albany, N.Y.) collecting All-NECC accolades while SVC head coach Dan Engelstad was named the league's Coach of the Year for the second straight season.

Hamlet was voted by league coaches to the All-NECC First Team, and Hall picked up an All-Conference Second Team honor. The three helped SVC win its first-ever NECC Championship over this past weekend, extending the year as the Mountaineers are now headed to the NCAA Division III tournament.

"This season has been a total team effort," commented the third-year SVC head coach. "Each game, there was a different guy that stepped up and led us. I am so proud of the team for that. That said, our seniors took on an increased leadership role that proved crucial for us- especially down the stretch. I can't say enough about what each of them means to this program. Deshawn and Casey were terrific in their senior campaigns."

Hamlet is taking home his second straight First Team accolade after he was voted as the Conference's Player of the Year in 2015. To this point of the season, he ranks 10th in the NECC with 14.7 points per game while shooting 56.6 percent from the floor, the fourth best mark in the league. He also pulls down 8.2 rebounds per game, ranking fourth in that category as well, while he averaged 9.1 caroms per game in league contests (third best). Hamlet surpassed the 1,500 career point mark this year, becoming the second highest all-time scorer in SVC program history. He was named the NECC Player of the Week once on the year and recorded nine double-doubles on the season.

Coach Engelstad said of his senior forward, "Deshawn has been a force in this league since he came to Southern Vermont. This season, he has become a more complete player. His defense, his passing, rebounding, and his conditioning all improved. He is very deserving of his First Team recognition."

The Second Team honor is the first All-NECC laurel for Hall, a forward who was tabbed the league tournament's Most Valuable Player after the championship game. He sits at seventh in the Conference's rebounds per game ranking with 7.4 boards per contest, and he leads the NECC with 1.6 blocked shots per game. The senior averaged 11.7 points per game to this point of the season, connecting on 47.9 percent of his field goal attempts; he tallied a 51.4 percent clip from the floor in Conference contests, ranking ninth in the league. Hall had 7.7 rebounds in NECC games, pulling down the ninth most in that category. He has registered five straight double-doubles, giving him six total on the year.

"Casey has always been our back line on the defensive end," noted Engelstad, "breaking the all-time blocks record and- this season in particular- becoming more aggressive to lead us as an offensive leader as well. His leadership and toughness down the stretch of the season helped make him one of the best players in our league."

Engelstad was selected by his peers as the league's Coach of the Year once again after leading the Mountaineers to their second straight undefeated league schedule and a 22-3 overall mark in regular season play. He was chosen as the HoopDirt.com Coach of the Week on February 22, and he became the all-time winningest coach for the Southern Vermont program with his 62nd victory at the helm of the team back on February 18.

"It has been so exciting to see this program develop the past three years," Engelstad added. "I could not have done it without my staff and the school support. It is an honor to coach these guys, and I look forward to continuing on with them in the NCAA tournament."

Mountaineer freshman Jackson Amankrah (New York, N.Y.) was also picked to represent SVC on the NECC All-Sportsmanship Team.

 

2016 NECC Men's Basketball All-conference Teams and Major Award Winners

First Team
Samuel Durodola, So., F, Rosedale, N.Y., Becker College
Rondell Best, Jr., G/F, Brockton, Mass., Daniel Webster College
Jerry Buchanon, Sr., G, Windsor, Conn., Elms College
Parris Hill, Sr., F, Stockton, Calif., Mitchell College
DeShawn Hamlet, Sr., F, Hartford, Conn., Southern Vermont College

Second Team
Kyle Credle, Jr., G, Queens, N.Y., Becker College
Devon Mayo, Jr., G, Newport News, Va., Lesley University
Donavan McClean, Sr., G/F, Jersey City, N.J., Mitchell College
Casey Hall, Sr., F, Albany, N.Y., Southern Vermont College
Anthony Williams, Jr., F, White Plains, N.Y., Wheelock College

Third Team
Ray Farmer, Jr., F, Nashua, N.H., Daniel Webster College
Conny Ihearahu, Jr., G/F, Largo, Md., Elms College
Symon Smith, Jr., G, Oklahoma City, Okla., Elms College
Jeff Tagger Jr., Sr., G, Brockton, Mass., Regis (Mass.) College
Nicholas Fenton, Jr., G, East Hartford, Conn., Wheelock College                                

All Sportsmanship
Rashaun Liggon, Sr., F, Elizabeth, N.J., Becker College
Khial Watson, Sr., G, Ann Arbor, Mich., Daniel Webster College
Dimitri Tessier, Jr., G, Brockton, Mass., Elms College
Fabrice Louissaint, Jr., F, Everett, Mass., Lesley University
Brayvon Young, So., G, Port St. Lucie, Fla., Mitchell College
Dallas Serrano, Sr., G, Valley Stream, N.Y., Newbury College
Jordan Monts, Sr., G, Springfield, Mass., Regis (Mass.) College
Jackson Amankrah, Fr., G, New York, N.Y., Southern Vermont College
Joe Reedy, Sr., F, Orlando, Fla., Wheelock College