Air Force announces 2025 Bolt Award winners
5/21/2025 1:34:00 PM | General
The 2025 Bolt Awards commenced May 20, as cadet-athletes were awarded various honors during the event at Arnold Hall to celebrate the numerous Air Force athletic successes of the past year.
Chris Cicere, Chief of Intercollegiate Liaison Division/Student Athlete Affairs Chris Cicere, a 1983 Academy graduate, was again one of the architects of the festive evening.
"The Bolt Awards, like any endeavor in the athletic department, is a team effort," Cicere said. "Capt. Genevieve Miller ran point on this event since the fall, while Emma Cahillane and the entire AFAAC marketing team were instrumental in developing the entire presentation to include the script and the supporting videos. The athletic communications office developed the nominees in each category and the Arnold Hall staff were supportive, as we could not have this event without their support. From Air Force Sports Properties, Emma Porter worked with food vendors to provide a great meal for the cadets. As well, cadets Murphy Riggs, Emily Cook and Clay Cosentino were very helpful in getting cadet support for the Bolt Awards and in Murphy's case, she worked to get cadet presenters and participants in our videos of the Bird interacting with several of our teams!"
"The Bolt Awards are a chance for the cadets to have some fun in an informal setting," Cicere added.
Qualification for a Bolt Award accounts for performances that span the spring of 2024 through the winter of 2025.
2025 Bolt Award Winners
Most Supportive Team (Presented to the team that supports the most athletic events)
Spirit: attending the most games and demonstrating unmatched camaraderie and pride in the athletic community
Academic Team of the Year (Presented to the team with the highest Grade Point Average)
Women's Soccer (3.24)
Military Team of the Year (Presented to the team with the highest Military Performance Average)
Women's Tennis (3.554)
Upset of the Year
Hockey: Senior Captain Clayton Cosentino scored twice, including the game-winner in overtime to lead Air Force to a 4-3 win over 20th ranked Arizona State on October 5th at Cadet Ice Arena. The Falcons trailed 2-0 before rallying back, Cosentino's first goal of the game tied the game 2-2 in the second period. Air Force trailed 3-2 with under a minute left, and Brendan Gibbons scored an extra-attacker goal to force overtime. Senior goalie Guy Blessing stopped 32 of the 35 shots he faced.
Best Comeback Performance
Jo Huntimer, Women's Basketball: After being sidelined for much of 2023-24, Huntimer fought her way back into the Falcon starting lineup for her senior season. The Falcons' point guard finished the year second in the Mountain West in both assists and assist/turnover ratio. Huntimer's 147 assists (through MW tournament) in 2024-25 is the most by a Falcon in the program's Division I history and the most since the 1985 season.
Best Team Performance
Baseball, Spring 2024: Air Force capped the 2024 spring with its first regular season Mountain West Championship, as the Falcons 18 conference wins were the most in the league. Air Force took home three of the four individual conference awards, including Jay Thomason earning Co-Player of the Year honors, Seungmin Shim being named Pitcher of the Year, and head coach Mike Kazlausky picking up his first Coach of the Year distinction. Thomason's 21 home runs last spring account for 58 career home runs, as he became the all-time career home run leader in Mountain West history. Sam Kulasingam paved his way as the Falcons all-time hits leader, as he closed his career with 305 total hits. His 77 career doubles also tie the Air Force record. The Falcons managed a series win over #15 Dallas Baptist, the first series win over a ranked team since 2014. Air Force also took claim of all three games against Navy at the Freedom Classic, recording three series sweeps in 2024.
Best Male Individual Performance
Texas Tanner, Track: Texas Tanner broke Air Force Records in the shot put and weight throw at the Wyoming Power Meet on December 7th – and significantly improved those distances again at the Ted Nelson Invitational on January 24th and 25th. With a shot put of 63'7" and a weight throw of 73'0½", Tanner swept the event titles at the Ted Nelson Invitational, while breaking Facility Records in both throws and resetting the Meet Record in the shot put. Tanner, who improved his distance in the weight throw of 76-11¾" in the following week, combined for five Air Force Records between those two events in 2025.
Best Female Individual Performance
Maggie Slife, Women's Gymnastics: On January 24th, Air Force Women's Gymnastics defeated Utah State by .025 at a home dual against the Aggies. That night, Maggie Slife scored a 9.800 or better on all four events, topping out with a 9.900 earned on floor exercise and earning a 9.850 on the beam, 9.825 on the bars, and 9.800 on the vault. Slife's floor performance was good for the top score in the Mountain West that week and Floor Specialist of the Week, while also earning MW Gymnast of the Week honors as the top all-arounder in the conference.
Male Rookie of the Year
Cater Nogle, Wrestling: Carter Nogle earned the starting spot in the 141 division, making all 13 dual starts of the season. His nine Division I pins (13 total on the season) in 33:56 was the ninth most in Division I Wrestling heading into the post season, helping Air Force to four-straight seasons of having a wrestler in Top 10 pins. He secured his 22nd win of the season against Wyoming's No. 18 Cole Brooks for the first ranked win of his collegiate career. He concluded the season with the most wins and pins on the team.
Female Rookie of the Year
Chloe Perkins, Diving: Chloe Perkins opened her Air Force career with a phenomenal freshman season. Her successes were highlighted by a fourth-place finish at the Mountain West Championships, where she broke an Academy record on the 3-meter with a score of 327.55. The Raleigh, North Carolina native qualified for the NCAA Zone E meet eight separate times on the 3-meter and she notched a score of 270.05 on the 1-meter at the MW Championships to secure a spot. Perkins earned the honor of MW Freshman of the Week after taking first in the 1-meter and 3-meter springboards against Mines, Northern Colorado, and UTRGV. She was awarded MW Diver of the Week early in the season following a pair of top finishes on the 1-meter and 3-meter against Omaha and Liberty. Perkins garnered the most MW weekly awards for the Air Force women's swimming and diving team.
Male Athlete of the Year
Patrick Hoopes, Men's Gymnastics: Pommel horse specialist Patrick Hoopes, who claimed the Academy's first-ever NCAA title last spring, secured his second title in dominating fashion this season. He is a finalist for the Nissen-Emery Award – the top award in collegiate gymnasts. After capturing the pommel horse title at the NCAA Championships last spring, Hoopes won the Olympic Trials and finished second at the U.S. Championships over the summer. His success continued into the winter, where he retained his spot on the U.S. Men's Senior National Team following a runner-up finish at Winter Cup and secured his first international medal during a silver medal performance at the Baku World Cup – the first of three international assignments this year as a member of Team USA. Hoopes, the first Falcon in 13 years to win a Rocky Mountain Open title on the pommel horse, has been named the conference's Specialist of the Week three times this year, while also earning the national award once. With a 15.150 in Air Force's win over California, Hoopes became the first NCAA gymnast in any event to break the 15-point plateau under the new scoring system – and remains one of just two to accomplish that feat in 2025.
Female Athlete of the Year
Maggie Slife, Women's Gymnastics: Slife, the top-ranked gymnast in the Mountain West in 2025 and 38th-ranked gymnast in the nation, was a nine-time Mountain West Gymnast of the Week, proving the top all-arounder in the conference nine weeks out of 10. At 15 total weekly honors in 2025, Slife stands as the most decorated gymnast in the Mountain West this season, scoring 9.900 or better four times.
Unsung Hero Award
Austin Schwartz, Hockey: Senior Austin Schwartz earned Atlantic Hockey Co-Best Defensive Forward honors and is a finalist for the Derek Hines Unsung Hero Award. Schwartz is the only player in league history to win the Best Defensive Forward in back-to-back seasons. A team captain from Parker, Colo., Schwartz blocked 62 shots this season, the most of any forward in the nation and 24th among all players. This season, he played a key role in the Falcons ranking fourth in the league in scoring defense and ranking in the top 20 in the nation in shots allowed per game. Additionally, this season, he led the team with a career-high 12 goals, including a team-leading four game-winners. While playing in nearly every situation in all 40 games, he was called for just three minor penalties all season. His five career short-handed goals are tied as the most in Air Force's conference era and tied as the second most in school history.
Manager of the Year
Lawson Adler, Football: Lawson Alder has been a cadet manager since the fall of 2022 and has become one of the most trusted cadet managers on staff. Alder specifically works with the defensive coordinators, one of the most equipment intense positions to work with at the Air Force Academy. Alder's responsibilities as a football cadet manager include daily set up and break down of equipment 4 days a week in the fall, as well as for 15 practices in the spring. Alder assists in set up of the locker room for road games, as well as breaking down the locker room and loading the semi-trailer. Alder is respected amongst his peers down in the equipment room and has become a core leader as a cadet equipment manager.
Team with the Most Community Service Hours
Women's Gymnastics: The team has completed many service opportunities this year, and the entire cadet-athlete body did 3,188 hours of community service; the women's gymnastics team completing 1,186 hours of those hours, each gymnast participating in nearly 41 hours of community service this year.
Athletic Director's Award
Madison Smith, Women's Basketball: Madison Smith was an All-Mountain West honoree who closed her senior season averaging 15.2 points per game, while also sporting both the Falcons' best field goal percentage and three-point percentage. She had 74 steals this season, which led the Mountain West Conference. In her final five regular season games, she averaged 51 percent shooting from the field and an even 50 percent from the three-point range.
Chris Cicere, Chief of Intercollegiate Liaison Division/Student Athlete Affairs Chris Cicere, a 1983 Academy graduate, was again one of the architects of the festive evening.
"The Bolt Awards, like any endeavor in the athletic department, is a team effort," Cicere said. "Capt. Genevieve Miller ran point on this event since the fall, while Emma Cahillane and the entire AFAAC marketing team were instrumental in developing the entire presentation to include the script and the supporting videos. The athletic communications office developed the nominees in each category and the Arnold Hall staff were supportive, as we could not have this event without their support. From Air Force Sports Properties, Emma Porter worked with food vendors to provide a great meal for the cadets. As well, cadets Murphy Riggs, Emily Cook and Clay Cosentino were very helpful in getting cadet support for the Bolt Awards and in Murphy's case, she worked to get cadet presenters and participants in our videos of the Bird interacting with several of our teams!"
"The Bolt Awards are a chance for the cadets to have some fun in an informal setting," Cicere added.
Qualification for a Bolt Award accounts for performances that span the spring of 2024 through the winter of 2025.
2025 Bolt Award Winners
Most Supportive Team (Presented to the team that supports the most athletic events)
Spirit: attending the most games and demonstrating unmatched camaraderie and pride in the athletic community
Academic Team of the Year (Presented to the team with the highest Grade Point Average)
Women's Soccer (3.24)
Military Team of the Year (Presented to the team with the highest Military Performance Average)
Women's Tennis (3.554)
Upset of the Year
Hockey: Senior Captain Clayton Cosentino scored twice, including the game-winner in overtime to lead Air Force to a 4-3 win over 20th ranked Arizona State on October 5th at Cadet Ice Arena. The Falcons trailed 2-0 before rallying back, Cosentino's first goal of the game tied the game 2-2 in the second period. Air Force trailed 3-2 with under a minute left, and Brendan Gibbons scored an extra-attacker goal to force overtime. Senior goalie Guy Blessing stopped 32 of the 35 shots he faced.
Best Comeback Performance
Jo Huntimer, Women's Basketball: After being sidelined for much of 2023-24, Huntimer fought her way back into the Falcon starting lineup for her senior season. The Falcons' point guard finished the year second in the Mountain West in both assists and assist/turnover ratio. Huntimer's 147 assists (through MW tournament) in 2024-25 is the most by a Falcon in the program's Division I history and the most since the 1985 season.
Best Team Performance
Baseball, Spring 2024: Air Force capped the 2024 spring with its first regular season Mountain West Championship, as the Falcons 18 conference wins were the most in the league. Air Force took home three of the four individual conference awards, including Jay Thomason earning Co-Player of the Year honors, Seungmin Shim being named Pitcher of the Year, and head coach Mike Kazlausky picking up his first Coach of the Year distinction. Thomason's 21 home runs last spring account for 58 career home runs, as he became the all-time career home run leader in Mountain West history. Sam Kulasingam paved his way as the Falcons all-time hits leader, as he closed his career with 305 total hits. His 77 career doubles also tie the Air Force record. The Falcons managed a series win over #15 Dallas Baptist, the first series win over a ranked team since 2014. Air Force also took claim of all three games against Navy at the Freedom Classic, recording three series sweeps in 2024.
Best Male Individual Performance
Texas Tanner, Track: Texas Tanner broke Air Force Records in the shot put and weight throw at the Wyoming Power Meet on December 7th – and significantly improved those distances again at the Ted Nelson Invitational on January 24th and 25th. With a shot put of 63'7" and a weight throw of 73'0½", Tanner swept the event titles at the Ted Nelson Invitational, while breaking Facility Records in both throws and resetting the Meet Record in the shot put. Tanner, who improved his distance in the weight throw of 76-11¾" in the following week, combined for five Air Force Records between those two events in 2025.
Best Female Individual Performance
Maggie Slife, Women's Gymnastics: On January 24th, Air Force Women's Gymnastics defeated Utah State by .025 at a home dual against the Aggies. That night, Maggie Slife scored a 9.800 or better on all four events, topping out with a 9.900 earned on floor exercise and earning a 9.850 on the beam, 9.825 on the bars, and 9.800 on the vault. Slife's floor performance was good for the top score in the Mountain West that week and Floor Specialist of the Week, while also earning MW Gymnast of the Week honors as the top all-arounder in the conference.
Male Rookie of the Year
Cater Nogle, Wrestling: Carter Nogle earned the starting spot in the 141 division, making all 13 dual starts of the season. His nine Division I pins (13 total on the season) in 33:56 was the ninth most in Division I Wrestling heading into the post season, helping Air Force to four-straight seasons of having a wrestler in Top 10 pins. He secured his 22nd win of the season against Wyoming's No. 18 Cole Brooks for the first ranked win of his collegiate career. He concluded the season with the most wins and pins on the team.
Female Rookie of the Year
Chloe Perkins, Diving: Chloe Perkins opened her Air Force career with a phenomenal freshman season. Her successes were highlighted by a fourth-place finish at the Mountain West Championships, where she broke an Academy record on the 3-meter with a score of 327.55. The Raleigh, North Carolina native qualified for the NCAA Zone E meet eight separate times on the 3-meter and she notched a score of 270.05 on the 1-meter at the MW Championships to secure a spot. Perkins earned the honor of MW Freshman of the Week after taking first in the 1-meter and 3-meter springboards against Mines, Northern Colorado, and UTRGV. She was awarded MW Diver of the Week early in the season following a pair of top finishes on the 1-meter and 3-meter against Omaha and Liberty. Perkins garnered the most MW weekly awards for the Air Force women's swimming and diving team.
Male Athlete of the Year
Patrick Hoopes, Men's Gymnastics: Pommel horse specialist Patrick Hoopes, who claimed the Academy's first-ever NCAA title last spring, secured his second title in dominating fashion this season. He is a finalist for the Nissen-Emery Award – the top award in collegiate gymnasts. After capturing the pommel horse title at the NCAA Championships last spring, Hoopes won the Olympic Trials and finished second at the U.S. Championships over the summer. His success continued into the winter, where he retained his spot on the U.S. Men's Senior National Team following a runner-up finish at Winter Cup and secured his first international medal during a silver medal performance at the Baku World Cup – the first of three international assignments this year as a member of Team USA. Hoopes, the first Falcon in 13 years to win a Rocky Mountain Open title on the pommel horse, has been named the conference's Specialist of the Week three times this year, while also earning the national award once. With a 15.150 in Air Force's win over California, Hoopes became the first NCAA gymnast in any event to break the 15-point plateau under the new scoring system – and remains one of just two to accomplish that feat in 2025.
Female Athlete of the Year
Maggie Slife, Women's Gymnastics: Slife, the top-ranked gymnast in the Mountain West in 2025 and 38th-ranked gymnast in the nation, was a nine-time Mountain West Gymnast of the Week, proving the top all-arounder in the conference nine weeks out of 10. At 15 total weekly honors in 2025, Slife stands as the most decorated gymnast in the Mountain West this season, scoring 9.900 or better four times.
Unsung Hero Award
Austin Schwartz, Hockey: Senior Austin Schwartz earned Atlantic Hockey Co-Best Defensive Forward honors and is a finalist for the Derek Hines Unsung Hero Award. Schwartz is the only player in league history to win the Best Defensive Forward in back-to-back seasons. A team captain from Parker, Colo., Schwartz blocked 62 shots this season, the most of any forward in the nation and 24th among all players. This season, he played a key role in the Falcons ranking fourth in the league in scoring defense and ranking in the top 20 in the nation in shots allowed per game. Additionally, this season, he led the team with a career-high 12 goals, including a team-leading four game-winners. While playing in nearly every situation in all 40 games, he was called for just three minor penalties all season. His five career short-handed goals are tied as the most in Air Force's conference era and tied as the second most in school history.
Manager of the Year
Lawson Adler, Football: Lawson Alder has been a cadet manager since the fall of 2022 and has become one of the most trusted cadet managers on staff. Alder specifically works with the defensive coordinators, one of the most equipment intense positions to work with at the Air Force Academy. Alder's responsibilities as a football cadet manager include daily set up and break down of equipment 4 days a week in the fall, as well as for 15 practices in the spring. Alder assists in set up of the locker room for road games, as well as breaking down the locker room and loading the semi-trailer. Alder is respected amongst his peers down in the equipment room and has become a core leader as a cadet equipment manager.
Team with the Most Community Service Hours
Women's Gymnastics: The team has completed many service opportunities this year, and the entire cadet-athlete body did 3,188 hours of community service; the women's gymnastics team completing 1,186 hours of those hours, each gymnast participating in nearly 41 hours of community service this year.
Athletic Director's Award
Madison Smith, Women's Basketball: Madison Smith was an All-Mountain West honoree who closed her senior season averaging 15.2 points per game, while also sporting both the Falcons' best field goal percentage and three-point percentage. She had 74 steals this season, which led the Mountain West Conference. In her final five regular season games, she averaged 51 percent shooting from the field and an even 50 percent from the three-point range.
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