The Greater Middlesex Conference celebrated 70 student-athletes who have conducted themselves on and off the field with dignity and grace, during the 24th annual Dan Hayston Memorial Sportsmanship Awards luncheon at The Pines Manor in Edison on April 9.

In addition, the conference honored five student-athletes with Kindness Counts Awards.

Despite the added pressure of being held to a higher standard as a student-athlete, the Sportsmanship Award recipients have set an example for teammates and opponents, served as role models for youngsters, and are a credit to their schools and communities.

They are a reflection of their parents, coaches, and teachers who have molded them to respect the game, its rules and its participants.

A complete list of honorees can be found at the bottom of this story.

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VIEW A PHOTO GALLERY FROM THE EVENT.

In addition to honoring one boy and one girl from each member school with an individual Sportsmanship Award, the conference presented team Sportsmanship Awards to East Brunswick, New Brunswick, Perth Amboy and Wardlaw-Hartridge for accumulating the most team sportsmanship awards during the spring 2024, fall 2024 and winter 2025 seasons combined.

The Sportsmanship Award’s namesake, Dan Hayston, coached boys soccer for 22 years and taught physical education for three decades at East Brunswick High School, where he compiled a 358-91-24 mark and won a league record 10 conference tournament championships. The legendary Hall of Fame coach passed away in 2006 at the age of 56.

Hayton’s wife, Denise, son, Chris, and granddaughters, Madeline and Josephine, attended the luncheon. Chris teaches math and coaches boys soccer at South Brunswick, where he has helped the Vikings reach 10 conference tournament finals.

A staunch supporter of Greater Middlesex Conference student-athletes and their peers statewide, Senator Patrick Diegnan was in attendance to congratulate the honorees. Each of the award recipients received a personal congratulatory letter from Senator Diegnan.

Senior student-athletes Ava Barasch of Metuchen, Silas Vega of East Brunswick, Samantha Arnold of East Brunswick, and Matthew Reed of Spotswood highlighted the event, delivering outstanding speeches.

The Greater Middlesex Conference awarded a total of 10 scholarships in the amount of $300 each to Sportsmanship Award honorees selected via a random draw.

Paying forward the kindness of Jim Gano, the owner of Crown Trophy of Flemington, who generously donated the Greater Middlesex Conference Kindness Counts Award plaques, The Peter Fund and The Marisa Tufaro Foundation each donated a $300 scholarship to a Sportsmanship honoree. Those recipients were also selected via a random draw.

The five student-athletes who received Greater Middlesex Conference Kindness Counts Awards during the luncheon were John Colon of North Brunswick, Grace Gogola of East Brunswick, Roberto Morales-Lopez of Piscataway Magnet Academy, Juliana Marques of South River, and Sasha Smyth of Mother Seton (please click on the name of each award recipient to read a story about their kindness).

The award, which The Peter Fund and The Marisa Tufaro Foundation sponsored in partnership with the conference, is presented to student-athletes who demonstrate compassion, generosity, kindness, sportsmanship, inclusivity, and empathy.

In recognition of the award, each student-athlete received a commemorative plaque and $500 to donate in their name and honor to a charity of their choice that assists Middlesex County children in need.

A member of the Greater Middlesex Conference community nominated the recipients for the Kindness Counts Award, which was established in loving memory of the late Peter Bonn Elchoness, a student-athlete from Niwot High School in Colorado who died suddenly and without warning in his sleep from a rare disease that causes damage to the heart.

Peter was renowned throughout his school community as a magnetic presence who always looked out for others. Shortly after his passing at the age of 17 in November 2022, Peter’s family learned even more about his generosity of spirit through condolence letters they received from his classmates. Among other acts, Peter stood up to bullies, supported kids in crisis, and rooted for teammates and competitors.

His parents, Dave Elchoness, an Edison High School alumnus, and Eve Bonn, were told Peter saved lives.

Out of an unfathomable tragedy, the Bonn-Elchoness family has found an ineffably meaningful way to keep alive Peter’s indomitable spirit through the Kindness Counts Award.

A complete list of Greater Middlesex Conference Sportsmanship Award recipients can be found below.

Calvary Christian School: Ben Dabrowski and Victoria Barella

Carteret High School: Shane Castor and Daniela Portillo

Colonia High School: Joseph Figueira and Oyola Mia Cardenas

Dunellen High School: Danny Watts and Ella Walker

East Brunswick High School: Silas Vega and Samantha Arnold

East Brunswick Magnet School: Ramon Garcia and Addison Calabrese

Edison Academy Magnet School: Nimay Sathees and Deeya Mulchandani

Edison High School: Brody Ferrer and Olivia Smart

Highland Park High School: Seth Shapiro and Ruby Miller

J.F. Kennedy High School: Jayden France and Darshana Shah

J.P. Stevens High School: Sean Weeks and Jada Corbitt

Metuchen High School: Daniel Galligan and Ava Barasch

Middlesex High School: Owen Reynolds and Madison DeOliveira

Monroe High School: Kyle Capodanno and Nishmitha Thambi

Mother Seton Regional High School: Olivia Martinez

New Brunswick High School: Kevin Mercado and Kennedi Johnson

North Brunswick High School: Jahir Dawud and Rahkai Degrasse

North Plainfield High School: Anthony Penaranda and Saja Singletary

Old Bridge High School: Joshua Santiago and Peyton O’Regan

Perth Amboy High School: Yandel Susana and Genesis Soto

Perth Amboy Magnet School: Ethan Chendorain and Mextli Lomeli-Roman

Piscataway High School: Vaughn Turner and Alisha Dhillon

Piscataway Magnet School: Joel Polynice and Leila Martinez

Saint Joseph High School: Gavin Rivera

Saint Thomas Aquinas High School: Lucas Cassino and Emily Pittari

Sayreville High School: Brody Cannan and Angelina Sepulveda

Somerset Tech High School: Daniel Wuh and Rohini Routray

South Amboy High School: Jeremy Vasquez and Gabrielle Evanski

South Brunswick High School: Matthew Gomez Jimenez and Alexis Lease Springer

South Plainfield High School: Ryan Rizk and Ava Chapman

South River High School: Julius Rosado Juliana Marques

Spotswood High School: Matthew Reed Mikayla DaRocha

Timothy Christian School: Aaron George Anya Wildgoose

Wardlaw-Hartridge School: Ryan Maciorowski Mohisha Jha

Woodbridge Academy Magnet: School Sujal Dhoka Kiah Parekh

Woodbridge High School: Jahmir Beal Angelina Smolder