General | 7/16/2025 3:00:00 PM
BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg University athletic department is excited to announce its five major postseason award winners for the 2024-25 season. The awards consist of the Danny Litwhiler Underclass Male Athlete of the Year, the Joanne McComb Underclass Female Athlete of the Year, the Robert B. Redman Senior Male Athlete of the Year, the Eleanor Wray Senior Female Athlete of the Year, and the Outstanding Senior Male and Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year.
Joanne McComb Underclass Female Athlete of the Year
Kelly Leszcynski (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth)
Track and Field/Women's Basketball
Kelly Leszcynski (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) was the NCAA National Champion in Women's Javelin, with a school-record throw of 52.07m – the furthest throw in all of Division II this spring. The title was also the first Bloomsburg women's track & field national championship in any event. She also was the PSAC champion in the event and won four javelin competitions in total throughout the spring.
She added PSAC Spring Top-10 honoree to her already extensive resume as she was named the USTFCCCA Atlantic Region Field Athlete of the Year, earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors, PSAC Women's Track & Field Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year, and All-PSAC honors this season. In 2023, Leszcynski was an All-American after finishing fourth at the NCAA DII 2023 Track & Field Championships and was the PSAC runner-up in the javelin. She brought home All-Region honors as well as being named the PSAC Women's Track & Field Outdoor Freshman of the Year. Leszcynski is the school record holder in the javelin and has the 11 furthest throws in program history. Most recently, Leszcynski earned College Sports Communicators First Team Academic All-American honors after earned Academic All-District honors as well.
Leszcynski is also a stand-out on the basketball court and earned CSC Academic All-District honors this year. The redshirt sophomore jumped into a prominent role for Bloomsburg, playing in all 30 contests while making 12 starts on the season. The guard averaged 5.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.5 steals per game during the 2024-25 campaign. Leszcynski additionally played a complementary role along the perimeter, making 32.2 percent of her three-point attempts with 28 makes from deep on the season. Leszcynski is a two-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete and a one-time D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award recipient.
Leszcynski fought her way back to the court and javelin runway after being side-lined by injury for the 2023-24 athletic year. She picked up where she left off in the spring of 2025 as she threw an NCAA provisional mark in her first competition back from injury. Leszcynski also finished fourth in the championship flight of the javelin at the 2025 Penn Relays.
This is her second JoAnne McComb Underclass Female Athlete of the Year honor after taking home the award following the 2022-23 season.
Danny Litwhiler Underclass Male Athlete of the Year
Kody Besser (Lacey Township, N.J./Lacey Township)
Men's Soccer
For the second-straight year,
Kody Besser (Lacey Township, N.J./Lacey Township) was named the Danny Litwhiler Underclass Male Athlete of the Year after another impressive season for head coach Mark Bassett and the men's soccer team. Besser enjoyed an exceptional year anchoring the Huskies' defense this season and was honored by the PSAC as a First Team Defender for the second year in a row and led the Huskies to the program's first PSAC Title in program history.
The defender finished second on the team in points with four goals and a career-high five assists. The Lacey Township, N.J. native earned PSAC East Athlete of the Week honors once and was twice the PSAC East Defensive Athlete of the Week. The all-conference nod is the third of Besser's career, earning first-team honors in 2023 and 2024 with a second team bid in 2022.
Besser's impressive third-year campaign highlights one of the most decorated careers in program history. The junior is a two-time United Soccer Coaches All-Atlantic Region honoree, a two-time D2CCA All-Region recipient, and a three-time All-PSAC East member. The defender became the ninth player in team history to be a three-time all-conference recipient and the sixth among that group with multiple first-team nods. Besser earned First Team All-America honors from the United Soccer Coaches following the 2024 season. Besser, along with
Brady Rimple (Cherryville, Pa./Northampton Area) and
Owen Hollobaugh (State College, Pa./State College) are the first All-Americans from the United Soccer Coaches in program history.
The Lacey Township, N.J. native additionally became the ninth player in program history to be a two-time all-region honoree from the United Soccer Coaches. The junior is just one of two players in the team's history to be a two-time D2CCA All-Region honoree. Besser has started in 54 career games for the Huskies, accumulating 13 goals and eight assists for 34 total points.
Eleanor Wray Senior Female Athlete of the Year
Field Hockey
Aydan McFarland (Bloomsburg, Pa./Bloomsburg Area) caps her impressive four-year run with the Bloomsburg field hockey program as the Eleanor Wray Senior Female Athlete of the Year. McFarland is a two-time National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) All-American after bringing home first team honors in 2024 and was a second team honoree in 2023. McFarland is a two-time All-PSAC Honoree with first team honors in 2024 and second team in 2023.
McFarland's senior season in 2024 capped off a legacy defined by consistent excellence and leadership. She led the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) in both goals (21) and total points (50), finishing third in the nation in points per game and fourth in goals per game. Five of her goals were game-winners. For her efforts, McFarland was named a First Team NFHCA All-American, First Team All-PSAC, and earned multiple weekly honors including NFHCA National Player of the Week (twice) and PSAC Athlete of the Week. She was also selected to the NFHCA Senior Team, honoring the top seniors across the country.
As team captain, McFarland helped guide the Huskies to both the PSAC and NCAA Tournaments, building on a successful career that saw postseason appearances in each of her final three seasons, including the Huskies first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2011. Bloomsburg earned the No. 6 seeded and traveled to ESU for the opening round.
Her breakout junior campaign in 2023 featured nine goals and three assists, earning her NFHCA Second Team All-American and All-PSAC Second Team accolades. She ranked 13th in the PSAC in goals scored while starting all 19 games.
McFarland made an immediate impact as a freshman in 2021, starting 16 games and leading the team in assists. She continued to develop into a key contributor in 2022, finishing second on the team in scoring and helping Bloomsburg reach the PSAC Tournament.
Off the field, McFarland excelled in the classroom as a three-time Bloomsburg Scholar-Athlete, three-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete, and three-time NFHCA Division II National Academic Squad honoree. She earned College Sports Communicators Academic All-District At-Large honors this past May.
Outstanding Senior Female Scholar Athlete of the Year
Field Hockey/Softball
Bella Culp (Harrisburg, Pa/Central Dauphin), one of the most accomplished dual-sport athletes in recent history, concluded a standout four-year career in both field hockey and softball with accolades highlighting both academic and athletic success.
Culp was a four-year starter for the Huskies field hockey team and served as team captain during her senior season in 2024. She played in all 76 games during her collegiate career and was a driving force behind multiple postseason appearances.
As a junior in 2023, Culp delivered one of the best playmaking seasons in recent memory, earning NFHCA All-American Second Team and All-PSAC First Team honors. She led the team with 11 assists — the most by a Bloomsburg player since 2011 — while adding four goals. She ranked third in the PSAC and fourth in NCAA Division II in total assists.
Culp followed that campaign with a strong senior season in 2024, recording nine assists and one goal while starting all 21 games. She was selected to the NFHCA Senior Team and helped lead Bloomsburg to both the PSAC and NCAA Tournaments.
Equally dominant on the diamond, Culp was a four-year starter for the Bloomsburg softball team and served as a team captain in each of her final two seasons. She appeared in 208 career games, consistently batting over .350 and leading the Huskies through deep postseason runs.
In 2023, Culp batted .359 and started all 58 games, helping the team reach the PSAC Championship game. She matched that average again in 2024, leading the team in batting while guiding the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight year.
Her senior season in 2025 was a fitting finale, as she started all 54 games and helped Bloomsburg finish fifth in the PSAC Tournament and as runner-up in the NCAA Atlantic Region Tournament. She was named to the D2CCA All-Atlantic Region Second Team and concluded her career with 232 hits, ranking among the top 10 all-time at Bloomsburg.
Culp's success extended beyond athletics. She was a four-time Bloomsburg Scholar-Athlete, a four-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete for both sports, and a four-time NFHCA Division II Scholar of Distinction. She was also named to the NFHCA National Academic Squad all four years and earned Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete honors each season.
Her academic excellence earned national recognition as well. She was named College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District three times for softball and field hockey and was a CSC Third Team At-Large Academic All-American following the 2023-24 season for her play on the field hockey field.
Robert B. Redman Senior Male Athlete of the Year/Outstanding Senior Male Scholar Athlete of the Year
Brady Rimple (Cherryville, Pa./Northampton Area)
Men's Soccer
Graduate
Brady Rimple (Cherryville, Pa./Northampton Area) earned both the Robert B. Redman Senior Male Athlete of the Year and the Outstanding Senior Male Scholar Athlete of the Year honor following one of the most impressive careers in goal for the Huskies.
Off the pitch, Rimple completed his undergraduate degree in business management in spring 2023 with a 3.93 GPA before pursuing his Master of Business Administration (MBA). For his efforts in the classroom, Rimple finished his first graduate semester with a 4.0 GPA while being named a second-team College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America selection and the PSAC Champion Scholar for men's soccer. Additionally, Rimple is a two-time CSC Academic All-District choice, a three-time D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award recipient and a three-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete. He was a PSAC Fall Top-10 honoree as well.
Rimple finished his third year as a starter with the winningest season in program history. The goalkeeper started 20 of the team's 21 games, recording 57 saves across 1795 minutes played with a .792 save percentage and a .752 goals against average while tallying one assist. The graduate student was the anchor for one of the top defenses in the PSAC and Division II, leading the Huskies as a team to conference-best marks in save percentage, goals against average and shutout percentage, and the fourth-best defensive record in the nation. Rimple's efforts helped the Huskies to a program-record 15 wins and the first PSAC Championship in team history.
Overall, Rimple concludes his Bloomsburg career as the winningest and most decorated shot-stopper in team history. The Cherryville, Pa. native set the school single-season (9.5) and career (20.5) shutout records in his final campaign, becoming the only goaltender in team history to record three seasons with five or more shutouts. The graduate student led the Huskies to a team-record 11-game winning streak, eventually finishing with a career record of 38-13-8. In his three seasons in net, Bloomsburg had its best stretch in team history at 40-13-8, including the first NCAA Tournament win in program history during the 2023 campaign.
The graduate student's standout play between the sticks led to a host of individual accolades, including being named a first-team United Soccer Coaches All-American, first-team all-region from the United Soccer Coaches and the Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA), a first-team All-PSAC East honoree and the 2024 PSAC Tournament MVP.
