What better time to hand out the winter awards than a week during which you can wear your… What better time to hand out the winter awards than a week during which you can wear your sandals on one day and your winter coat on the next?

Like we did in the fall, The Pitt News voted on the top performers from the winter sports for the 2005-06 season. When the dust cleared, women’s basketball took home half of the awards. The men’s team, despite a surprising 25-8 season, garnered no awards, perhaps a testament to the team’s balance on the year.

Nevertheless, the results are in-

Male Athlete of the Winter – Jeremy Stutlz, Diving

This sophomore diver was the Panthers’ only male representative at the National Swimming and Diving Championships.

As a freshman, Stultz was named to the Big East First Team, but after this season, Stultz earned 2006 Big East Diver of the Year Honors.

After winning the 3-meter boards at the NCAA Diving Zones, Stultz advanced to the National Championships where he finished as one of the nation’s top 30 divers. Still, he didn’t finish the way he would have liked to after flu-like symptoms hindered his performance at NCAAs.

The experience has helped, though, and this already polished diver figures to do big things in his last two years at Pitt.

– Dave Thomas, Senior Staff Writer

Female Athlete of the Winter – Andrea Arlotta, Gymnastics

A season plagued with injuries may have led to a disappointing finish for the Pitt gymnastics team, but the Panthers did enjoy one constant for most of the season – the outstanding finishes of Andrea Arlotta.

This has been a standout season for junior and co-captain Arlotta, who has gained recognition as one of the highest-ranked all-around competitors in the East Atlantic Gymnastics League. She is among the top three in EAGL Conference on the vault and uneven bars.

Some of the prestigious honors she received this season include “Gymnast of the Week” for the week of Feb. 14th and a unanimous vote to the First Team All-EAGL in the all-around. Despite a foot injury toward the end of the season, Arlotta managed to finish out the season strong. She came back and earned her position as Pitt’s top performer in the EAGL Championships.

– Erin Castellano, Staff Writer

Male Freshman Athlete of the Winter – Joey Ecklof, Wrestling

Wrestling freshman Joey Ecklof entered the 2005-06 season with lofty expectations. Fans expected a lot out of the three-time Pennsylvania state champion, and he delivered.

In his first year, Ecklof finished 19-14 overall, including a pin of the No. 12-ranked Darren McKnight of Michigan State. He recorded four pins and three major decisions, while placing fourth in the EWL Tournament.

His season earned him a wild-card berth to the NCAA Tournament, where his season ended prematurely with a tear of his PCL in his first match.

– Alan Smodic, Senior Staff Writer

Female Freshman of the Winter – Shavonte Zellous, Women’s Basketball

Almost as quickly as the Pitt women’s basketball team began to break records this season, freshman Shavonte Zellous started to bloom into a promising young star.

After earning her first start against San Diego State early in the season, Zellous – or “Tay Tay” as her teammates and Coach Berenato have coined her – grew from top reserve to regular starter in no time.

Zellous led a freshman class full of potential all year for the Panthers, the highlight of which could be scoring a career-high 17 points on 7-for-9 shooting from the field in Pitt’s first-round Big East Tournament win over Cincinnati – the first postseason win for Pitt in 10 years.

Weeks later, Zellous nabbed her first double-double, bringing down 10 rebounds to match 11 points in Pitt’s second-round WNIT win over Mississippi.

– Pat Mitsch, Senior Staff Writer

Coach of the Winter – Agnus Berenato, Women’s Basketball

Guiding a Panther team that finished 13-15 last season, Agnus Berenato defied the odds makers that picked Pitt to finish 13th in the Big East preseason poll and had them playing deep into March.

Though it wasn’t an NCAA Tournament as they hoped, the Panthers’ WNIT Final Four finish is a step in the right direction.

Led by All-Big East members Marcedes Walker and Mallorie Winn, Pitt’s 22-11 mark tied a 25-year-old team record for victories. In her third season at the Pitt helm, Berenato has also been recognized by the Post-Gazette as the Dapper Dan Sportswoman of the Year.

– Dave Siegal, Staff Writer

Team of the Winter – Women’s Basketball

Berenato had talked about this kind of turnaround since day one, and in only her third year, she has already delivered.

A team just two years removed from a 6-20 finish, the Panthers won 22 games while reaching the final four of the Women’s NIT this season, shooting up the Big East ranks and narrowly missing out on an NCAA Tournament berth.

Berenato’s bunch made believers out of its fans as they proved the critics – who picked Pitt to finish 13th in the Big East – wrong. The team will return four of its five starters next season to try and make another run at the school’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance.

– Jeff Greer, Staff Writer