Athletes of the Year
The winners of this Award are Sean O’Brien and Melissa Hartman

Sean O’Brien came to the St. John Fisher College as a tremendous athlete.  He will leave this May as a portrait of leadership.
“We’ll miss Sean’s competitiveness so much next season,” said men’s basketball coach Rob Kornaker.  “He really brought everyone on our team up to a whole new level, and simply refused to lose any game he was in.”
O’Brien was apart of Kornaker’s first recruiting class in the 2002-2003 season.  Kornaker knew from the start that O’Brien was a special talent, but it would take time for this star to shine.
“[Sean] was a heck of a player when he got here,” said Kornaker.  “At that time though we had some seniors like Matt St. Croix playing above him, and Sean had to bide his time before he could make his mark.”
That season O’Brien played in only eight games.  The following year he came back to play in all 29 games, putting his story book career into motion.
“[Sean] got bigger and stronger every year,” said Kornaker.  “He got to the point where he could be one or two steps ahead of every play.”
During these years O’Brien’s statistics and contributions continued to grow, culminating in a record breaking senior campaign which saw O’Brien lead the St. John Fisher Cardinals all the way to the Elite 8 in Amherst, Massachusetts.
“We wanted to make it further in the tournament than we did last season, and fortunately we were able to this year,” said O’Brien.  “We ended up making it further than any other team in Fisher’s basketball history.”
Despite this amazing feat, being the competitor that he is, O’Brien still hoped to see his team one step further.
“Obviously I wanted to win a national championship,” smiled O’Brien.  “I would trade everything for a berth into the final four, and a shot at a national title.”
Leading up to this run at the national championship, O’Brien was lights out.  Running the team’s offense, O’Brien took the team to a 26-4 mark, leading the Empire 8 Conference in assists per game and free throw percentage. 
During that run O’Brien nailed a jumper in overtime of the Empire 8 semi-final against RIT, which propelled Fisher to their fifth Empire 8 Championship in the past six years.
“It will always be a fond memory knowing that we won the Empire 8 title all four years I was here at Fisher,” said O’Brien.  “Of course it was a goal of mine freshman year to win one; I never could have dreamed winning four in a row.”
Even though O’Brien is quick to mention all of the team’s accomplishments, nobody can deny what he did individually in the 2005-2006 season.
O’Brien became Fisher’s first All-American first team selection in basketball, and he was named the Empire 8 Conference Player of the Year, while moving to ninth on Fisher’s all-time scoring list with 1,115 points.
“I’m honored to have received so many individual awards, but really they come in second to what we have done as a team,” said O’Brien.
Now that his athletic tenure at Fisher is complete, O’Brien is eager to begin his business career as an accountant at Price Waterhouse Coopers.
“I’ll always keep my ears open as far as playing European basketball,” said O’Brien.  “Right now though, I am ready to move on to something new.”

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Melissa Hartman

Head coach Phil Kahler of the St. John Fisher women’s basketball program has nothing but admiration for graduating senior Melissa Hartman.
“In my 30 years of coaching, [Melissa] turned out to be one of the finest basketball players we’ve ever had,” Kahler said. “I have not seen someone that dominant, both offensively and defensively, since Robin Mortensen,” he said.
Mortensen, who played for Fisher from 1979 to 1983, amassed 2,421 points and 1,508 rebounds in her career.  She made several all-tournament teams, won numerous awards, and has since been inducted into the Fisher Athletics Hall of Fame.
Kahler gives Hartman “all the credit in the world” for becoming the player she was this past season.  He said her success was due to her work ethic and dedication.
Hartman did not play much her freshman year, only starting in two games.  Since then, she has worked on her quickness, outside shooting and foul shooting – during the season and the off-season.
“She buckled down and really put her heart and soul into it,” said her mother Pattiann Crossett.  “She worked on a lot and spent a lot of time in the gym.  I was really surprised and impressed.”
Hartman wanted to make this year extra special, knowing it was her final season.
“I did not want to leave room for doubts that I did not work as hard as I could have,” she said.
Her family saw this commitment.
“In the off season she trained harder than ever and it paid off,” said her brother Matt Hartman, also a senior at Fisher.
“I noticed she was more confident [this year],” said Crossett.  “She played without apprehension, like she didn’t have anything to lose.”
Her father Larry Hartman saw another change in her play.
“In years past, she would get a lot of fouls early in games,” her father said.  “This year she did very good defensively without causing too many fouls.”
Melissa ended the year having her best single season as a Cardinal – one that ranks top ten in Fisher history in scoring (6th), rebounding (9th) and free throw percentage (4th).
She finished the season atop the Empire 8 Conference in points per game (19.9), offensive rebounds per game (4.46) and steals per game (3.57).  She was named the Empire 8 Conference Player of the Year and ECAC Upstate Player of the Year.
In addition, Kahler said Melissa has been invited to an overseas pro basketball tryout in Boston, Mass.
“That’s a huge honor,” said Kahler.  “Few people are invited to that in the state, let alone as a DIII athlete.”
Despite these accomplishments, her many awards and now being named Courier Female Athlete of the Year, Melissa remains humble.  “I was part of a really special team that included many close friends which made this news that much more meaningful,” she said.
But Kahler will be the first to say she deserves the praise she has been getting.
“It’s hard to put into words what she meant to the team this year,” he said.  “I really have all the admiration in the world for her – unbelievable.”
And her parents could not be prouder.
“I’m very proud of her, even without the awards,” said her mother.

“She’s gone way far beyond what I expected,” said her father.  “I’m proud of what she’s accomplished and I hope she can continue it through life.”

By Craig Kanalley
cpk9817@sjfc.edu