Kim Pate Named 2022-23 Cushman & Wakefield Athletics Director of the Year

The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) announced the winners of the Cushman & Wakefield Athletic Director of the Year Award (ADOY) on March 27 and LR's Vice President of Athletics Kim Pate was honored.

The award spans seven divisions (NCAA FBS, FCS, Division I-AAA, II, III, NAIA/Other Four-Year Institutions and Junior College/Community Colleges). Winners will be recognized in conjunction with the 58th Annual NACDA and Affiliates Convention at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Fla., at the beginning of the Association-Wide Featured Session on Tuesday, June 13, starting at 4 p.m.



"I am beyond humbled to be recognized amongst such an impressive group of leaders to receive this distinguished award," said Vice President for Athletics Kim Pate. "This truly is a team award and a reflection of the amazing people that make up the Bears Family. I am so blessed to work alongside one of the most dedicated and talented groups of coaches and administrators who are passionate about elevating LR Athletics to new heights in order to provide our student-athletes with an exceptional experience."



The ADOY Award highlights the efforts of athletics directors at all levels for their commitment and positive contributions to student-athletes, campuses and their surrounding communities.



Cushman & Wakefield is in its second year of sponsoring the award. The ADOY Award program is in its 25th year and has recognized a total of 556 deserving athletics directors to date.



Pate has brought about dynamic growth both on and off the field since she stepped foot in Hickory. She is now able to add the Athletics Director of the Year award to her impressive resume. In the past year, Pate oversaw the completion of an $18M upgrade to Moretz Stadium as well as the second phase of upgrades in Shuford Arena along with a grandstands and a video board addition at Durham Field.



On the field, LR has reached new heights. In this athletic season, Lenoir-Rhyne has boasted nine teams have been nationally ranked and the Triathlon team captured an NCAA National Championship in just its third year of competition. The Track and Field team recorded the first individual national championship in program history in Alexis Brown and a pair of national runner-up finishes from Dario Matau. A year ago, LR crushed a program record with 26 All-Americans.



Off the field, the Bears are just as successful. LR had a school record seven SAC Scholar-Athletes of the Year and six players went on to be named CoSIDA Academic All-Americans. As a department, Lenoir-Rhyne teams had an average team GPA of 3.33 and 22 out of 24 athletic teams had a GPA of 3.0 or higher.  Myles Moffat (men's lacrosse) earned the SAC Presidents' Award which is the highest individual honor presented annually by the SAC. Additionally, Carles Montoliu Lobo (men's soccer) and Savannah Moorefield (softball) were named the SAC Man and Woman of the Year. In the community, LR finished 9th in all of Division II in community service hours, another program record.

This story originally appeared on LRBears.com.