Drexel Athletics 2024-2025 Annual Report | Top Stories

A Message from Maisha Kelly, Vice President, Director of Athletics & Recreation

The 2024-25 campaign for the Dragons saw widespread success throughout the year. We are proud of a team of coaches and staff who have led, supported and rooted our programs in the mission of the university and department. It is with this care and execution that 11 of our 18 varsity programs finished the year within the top three of their respective conferences, by way of regular season finish and/or postseason performance, highlighted by our Field Hockey program, which garnered the CAA Regular Season Championship and finished the season ranked 17th. The Women’s Lacrosse team secured 10 straight victories on its way to a CAA Championship appearance and final ranking within the top 25 nationally. It was the best postseason finish in CAA history for the Golf program after forcing a playoff at the CAA Championships. These results are a statement of our goal to achieve competitive excellence, one we will look to continue as a standard each year.

We take great pride in the academic achievements of our student-athletes, whose devotion to their studies is evident by producing a cumulative GPA greater than 3.4. The transformative growth that transpires outside of the competitive lines exemplifies their commitment to academic and personal development. The Men’s Swimming & Diving program continues to lead by example after boasting the second-highest GPA in the country amongst its swimming & diving peers.

The department and its student-athletes continue to demonstrate a commitment to the community through multiple civic engagement initiatives.

Intramurals and Club Sports offer another outlet and recreational approach to impact the student body through athletics. The completion of the Buckley Turf Field and Buckley Bubble within the Vidas footprint created additional opportunities for the entire student body.

The year concluded in record fashion as our fundraising efforts set new heights. Through engaging a diverse base of over 2,000 unique donors, more than $2 million of cash was raised in operational support for our programs. We welcomed countless alumni, friends and supporters back to campus, highlighted by the induction of the 2025 Hall of Fame class.

We are excited to build on the momentum from this past year and welcome new leadership in President Antonio Merlo, PhD, along with new Dragons who will enter the fold. Guided by Drexel Athletics’ mission to foster academic, athletic, and personal excellence, we remain devoted to developing student-athletes holistically and offering a platform of experiential learning that aligns with the university’s ethos. With a shared vision, we look forward to advancing our impact both on and off the field.

Go Dragons!

Field Hockey Captures CAA Regular Season Title, Zelenak, Van Hellemont and Elsen Receive Major Awards

Drexel Field Hockey captured the CAA regular season title for the first time since 2010 after posting an impressive 6-0 conference mark. The team was well represented in conference postseason honors as Denise Zelenak earned CAA Coach of the Year, Valentine Van Hellemont was Player of the Year and Pien Elsen was selected as Defensive Player of the Year.

In addition, Zelenak recorded her 300th career coaching win and the team finished the year ranked #17 nationally.

The accolades continued to role in as Van Hellemont was named a Second Team All-American by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA). She became the program's eighth player to receive this honor. Van Hellemont was also named a member of the NFHCA First Team All-Region.

Dragons Capture Fourth Straight Dad Vail Men's Title; Drexel Wins Overall Championship

Drexel men's rowing captured the men's title for the fourth consecutive year at the Jefferson Dad Vail Regatta. Collectively, the men's and women's teams combined to win the overall championship for the second year in a row. All eight boats competed in Grand Finals with the 3rd varsity 8+ and Varsity 4+ taking home gold.

The women's varsity 8+ won gold claiming the trophy in back-to-back seasons. The 2V8+ boat also captured gold as all five teams competed in Grand Finals.

Drexel Wins EIWA Division Title, Hosts NCAA Wrestling Championships

The wrestling program won the EIWA Independence Division team title after an impressive regular season while placing second at the EIWA Championships. Mert ’67 and Joanne ’69 Hill Head Wrestling Coach Matt Azevedo was named EIWA Coach of the Year following the success on the mat.

Mickey O'Malley, Jasiah Queen and Jordan Soriano all qualified and competed at the 2025 NCAA Championships, which Drexel hosted at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.

Men's Squash Captures MASC Title, White Named Men's Coach of the Year

John White was named Mid-Atlantic Squash Conference Coach of the Year after guiding the Drexel men's squash team to the Holley Cup, defeating Virginia in the MASC Finals. Both the men’s and women’s teams qualified for nationals, concluding the year ranked in the top 10. Eight members of Drexel men's and women's squash were named to All-Mid Atlantic Squash teams.

Amari Williams '24 Selected by Boston in Second Round of NBA Draft

Former Dragon Amari Williams was selected in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft. Williams was selected by the Boston Celtics with the 46th pick overall.

Williams, who graduated in 2024, was the first player in CAA history to be named Defensive Player of the Year three times. He was a two-time All-CAA First Team selection and was twice named the team's Most Valuable Player. He finished his career with 186 blocked shots, which ranks fifth in program history. Williams also grabbed 732 rebounds, good for 13th all-time at Drexel.

Williams became the eighth Drexel basketball player to be selected in the NBA Draft and the first since Malik Rose in 1996. The others are Michael Anderson (1988), Richard Congo (1984), Michael Mitchell (1984), Randy Burkert (1982), Len Hatzenbeller (1981) and Greg Newman (1974).

Drexel Golf Places Second at CAA Championship

The Drexel golf team came from behind to force a playoff but fell to Elon at the CAA Championships. The Dragons hosted the event at Union League National Golf Club in South Jersey. The Dragons were behind by five strokes late in the round but tied it when Griffin Mitchell made a long eagle putt to force the playoff. The second place finish at the conference championship was the best in school history.

Mitchell finished second overall in the Championship and was named to the All-Tournament team.

Men's Swimming and Diving Earn Multiple CSCAA Team Scholar All-American Honors; Tie for Second-Best GPA Among Division I Programs

The Drexel men's swimming and diving team received multiple Team Scholar All-American honors from the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association (CSCAA) and boasted the second-highest GPA in the country during two separate academic counting time frames this season.

The men's team matched the second-best GPA in Division I, tying with Harvard. Brown led the nation.

Additionally, Theo Andreopoulos, Kacper Karnik, Jakub Kwasny, and Sebastian Smith received individual 2024-25 Scholar All-America Second Team honors. These student-athletes achieved a grade point average of 3.50 or higher and swam a "B" time standard or competed at an NCAA Regional or Zone Diving qualifier.

The Drexel men's swimming and diving team was named the Coastal Athletic Association's recipient of the Team Academic Excellence Award for the 2024-25 academic year.

Additionally, the program earned the Team Academic Excellence Award from the CAA. The award recognizes the institution with the highest collective grade point average in all 22 sports sponsored by the CAA.

Drexel Appoints New Head Coaches for Golf, Softball

Drexel named Scott Yurgalevicz Head Coach of the golf program and Brooke Kalman was named Head Softball Coach. Yurgalevicz is a PGA Golf Instructor at Philadelphia Cricket Club and was a head coach at the Division I level for nearly a decade at La Salle.

Kalman concluded her third season at Gettysburg College in 2025, winning the Centennial Conference regular season as well as the NCAA Regional Championship, and has prior head coaching experience at MIT, Franklin & Marshall and Ripon College.

Drexel University Receives 2025 Telly Award for Halftime Show

Drexel University has received a Silver Winner award in the General-Student category at the 2025 Telly Awards for its production of a halftime show during the basketball season. Drexel Athletics collaborated with faculty and students from the Westphal College of Media Arts & Design to design and orchestrate a five minute halftime that was shown live during Drexel Basketball home games. The halftime show that was chosen as the winner was the women's basketball game on February 14, 2025 against William & Mary, in which the Dragons prevailed in overtime, 59-58.

Olympic Gold Medalist Justin Best ’19 Returns to Campus

Drexel alumnus Justin Best ’19, Olympic gold medalist, two-time Olympian and investment banker, returned to campus on several occasions over the past year, highlighted by delivering the commencement address to the Class of 2025 at the University-wide commencement ceremony.

Best represented Team USA as a rower in two Olympic Games. His first appearance came as a member of the men’s eight at the pandemic-delayed 2020 Summer Olympics. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Best and his teammates achieved a historic victory in the men’s four, capturing the first gold medal in men’s rowing for Team USA in 64 years.