Athletics Department | 6/17/2025 2:00:00 PM
MOORHEAD, Minn. -- MSU Moorhead athletics has announced its annual year-end awards for the 2024-25 athletic year. Four Dragon student-athletes claimed Athlete of the Year honors while two were named MSUM's Newcomers of the Year.
The award winners and accolades from the 2024-25 season are as follows:
Athletes of the Year
Avery Steffen, Softball
NFCA All-Central Region Second Team...All-NSIC First Team...turned in one of the greatest single-seasons in program history, hitting for a .399 average and setting single-season MSUM records in hits (75), runs scored (50) and triples (9)...also featured nine doubles and a pair of home runs on the season...drove home 16 runs while bolstering a 1.007 OPS, a .574 slugging percentage and a .433 on-base mark...was especially potent in NSIC competition, marking a .422 batting average with 38 hits and a 1.076 OPS...set the MSUM single-season school record for stolen bases after claiming 30 bases in 34 attempts...showed her versatility as well, twirling 86.1 innings with a 4.38 ERA and 84 strikeouts...had three saves and a shutout in the circle as well...held batters to a .275 average while pitching...currently holds MSUM career records for batting average (.352) and stolen bases (46)...named NSIC Pitcher of the Week on February 4...NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence...Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award winner...CSC Academic All-District selection.
Shavantae Roberts, Track & Field
Indoor: First Team All-America in the 60m dash after a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships...had a finals time of 7.44 to earn the All-America finish...clocked a school record 7.40 in the 60m dash preliminaries at the national meet, her third time breaking the record during the season...All-NSIC in the 60m dash after a runner-up finish at the NSIC Indoor Track & Field Championships...also set the MSUM school record in the indoor 200m at the UND Open, clocking a time of 24.45...won the 60m dash at both the UND Open and the Dakota Alumni Classic...finished fifth overall in the 200m at the NSIC Indoor Track & Field Championships behind a time of 24.68...Named NSIC Track Athlete of the Week on December 17.
Outdoor: Second Team All-America in the 100m dash after an 11th-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships...clocked an 11.44 in the event's preliminaries to earn the All-America nod...USTFCCCA All-Region in the 100m dash while also capturing All-NSIC distinction in the 100m after a runner-up finish at the league's outdoor championships...reset her own MSUM school record at the NSIC Championships, marking an 11.42 to improve on the record timing...finished seventh in the 100m dash at the Bryan Clay Invitational behind a time of 11.67...also placed 15th in the 100m at the Beach Invitational on April 17.
Jaiden Peraza, Track & Field
Indoor. USTFCCCA All-Central Region in the high jump...All-NSIC and NSIC Champion in the high jump with a clearing of 6-09.5 (2.07m) at the NSIC Indoor Track & Field Championships...finished 13th overall in high jump at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, clearing 6-09 (2.06m) at the national meet...also saw a podium finish in long jump at the conference meet, traveling 22-10 (6.96m) to finish eighth and record a new personal best...set a personal best in high jump at the Bison Open, clearing 7-0.25 (2.14m), which is the second-highest indoor jump in program history...with the performance, became one of two individuals in indoor program history to jump seven feet or higher...had four high jump wins during the regular season at the Dakota Alumni Classic, the UND Open, the Bison Open and the SDSU Indoor Classic...Named NSIC Field Athlete of the Week on December 17.
Outdoor: Second Team All-America in the high jump after a ninth-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships...cleared 6-09.5 (2.07m) at the national meet to earn the placement...All-NSIC and was the NSIC's champion in high jump, clearing 6-09.75 (2.08m) to sweep the league's high jump event during the season...had a top showing of 6-10.25 (2.09m) at the Bison Open to finish third overall...the mark is tied for the sixth-best outdoor high jump performance in MSUM history...also placed third in the high jump at the NDSU Spring Classic, clearing 6-07.5 (2.02m).
Jasiah Hambira, Track & Field
Indoor: All-NSIC in the high jump following a runner-up finish in the event at the NSIC Indoor Track & Field Championships...had a clearance of 6-09.5 (2.07m) at the conference meet...had a season-best effort in the high jump at the Bison Open, clearing 6-09.75 (2.08m), which is the seventh-best height in school history...also set a season best in the 400m at the UND Open, clocking a 50.24...competed on MSUM's 4x400m relay team that finished fifth at the conference meet.
Outdoor: First Team All-America in the high jump after an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships...cleared a personal best 6-11.5 (2.12m) to earn his spot on the national podium...the leap stands alone as the fourth-best outdoor high jump in program history...All-NSIC in the high jump following a runner-up finish at the league meet, clearing 6-08.75 (2.05m)...picked up event wins in the high jump at both the Al Bortke Open and the NDSU Spring Classic...earned a runner-up spot in the high jump at the Bison Open, clearing 6-10.25 (2.09m)...was named NSIC Field Athlete of the Week on April 15.
Newcomers of the Year
Fernanda Leon, Swimming & Diving
All-NSIC in the 400-yard IM following a runner-up finish at the NSIC Swimming & Diving Championships...marked a 4:31.03 finishing time in the race, the second-fastest time in program history...narrowly missed All-NSIC distinction in the 200-yard butterfly behind a time of 2:06.97...also finished fifth in the 200-yard IM with a personal best time of 2:07.49, now the second-fastest time in school history...had 14 event wins during the season as well as two other runner-up showings...marked a personal best of 2:06.47 in the 200-yard fly against SMSU, the second-fastest mark in school history...also set top ten times in the 100-yard fly (57.89), the 50-yard fly (26.86) and the 100-yard IM (1:02.27)...was named NSIC Swimmer of the Week on October 22.
Carson Johnson, Men's Basketball
NABC All-Central District First Team...D2CCA All-Central Region Second Team...All-NSIC First Team...had his redshirt pulled midyear and went on to play and start in 23 games for the Dragons...led the team with 19.8 points per game, connecting on 43.7 percent of his field goal attempts...was lethal from long range as well, sinking a team-best 64 three-pointers at a 41.8 percent success rate...scored in double figures in all but three games during the season, including 12 performances with 20 or more points...dropped a season-high 42 points against St. Cloud State on February 1, the most in a single game by a true freshman in program history...the point total was also the highest in a single game since 1995...was named NSIC All-Tournament Team, becoming just the third freshman in league history to earn the honor...became the first freshman in NSIC history to win NSIC Tournament MVP as well...also named to the NCAA Central Region All-Tournament Team.
