Bridgewater, NJ — His multiple all-conference athletic credentials are only a small drop in the bucket when it comes to the outstanding accomplishments of Wagner sixth-year baseball standout Lukas Torres (Barnegat, NJ/Barnegat).
 
The NEC all-star outfielder capped off his six-year collegiate career with a grand slam, earning the league’s most coveted individual honor after he was named the 2025-26 NEC Male Team Student-Athlete of the Year award presented by Provident Bank.
 
The NEC uses the distinguished award to annually recognize individual excellence in both the academic and athletic realms as well as leadership and contributions to one’s community. Chosen out of a pool of 10 men’s finalists across the NEC’s core membership, Torres was recognized alongside FDU women’s tennis star Anastasia Lim, who was the winner of the 2025-26 NEC Female Team Student-Athlete of the Year honor.
 
Wagner’s first-ever baseball student-athlete to be crowned NEC Male Team Student-Athlete follows in the footsteps of a long line of honorees that hailed from Wagner, including Jonathan Besselink (men’s cross country, men’s track and field; 2019-20), Charlton Boyd (men’s tennis; 2017-18), Phil Faccone (football; 2014-15) and Steve Cioicci (football; 2012-13).
 
“Lukas has been an outstanding student-athlete, leader and person throughout his time at Wagner,” said Wagner Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics/Interim Athletic Director Walt Hameline. “He leads by example every day and serves as a role model for his teammates and younger student-athletes through his work ethic, character and commitment to excellence. We are extremely proud of him and this recognition is very well deserved.”
 
Torres was a mainstay at the top of the Seahawks’ lineup as a senior in 2024 and thanks to his keen eye and prowess at the plate, he cemented himself as Wagner’s leadoff hitter in his final two seasons as a grad student.
 
One of three players on the circuit to launch 80-or-more hits with 82, his .406 batting average ranked him second in the league in 2026. In addition, Torres, who shattered Wagner’s single-season record in walks and drew the second-most bases on balls among all NEC hitters this past year (52), topped the league charts with a 0.532 on-base percentage, a clip that is the nation’s sixth-best mark. He also ranked second in runs (65), drove in 37 runs and stole 17 bases in 19 attempts.
 
Torres upgraded his status from All-NEC Second Team in 2025 to first team recognition this last month. In addition, the 10-time career NEC Prime Performer nods added even more hardware to his trophy case when he was named Wagner’s SAAC Male Athlete of the Year this spring.  
 
“Lukas has represented the Wagner College Baseball program and the campus community in an exceptional manner during his time here on Grymes Hill,” said Wagner head baseball coach Craig Noto. “The impact and legacy he has left behind here at Wagner is one of academic and athletic success on and off the field. Hall of Fame players and Hall of Fame humans are an amazing combination. This is an amazing accomplishment and I would like to thank the NEC for honoring him. I thank Lukas for all of his efforts and wish him the best of luck as he heads into the next chapter of his life.”
 
In the classroom, Torres displayed just as much — if not more — consistency and diligence.
 
He achieved near perfection in his academics during both his undergraduate and graduate studies. Graduating in 2024 with a 3.97 GPA as a Chemistry major and Biology minor, he departed Grymes Hill with a Master of Business Administration – Finance in impressive fashion, earning a 3.92 GPA. Those marks earned Torres a whopping six nods to both the NEC Academic and Commissioner’s Honor Roll lists.
 
His scholarly successes can also be measured by the numerous awards he received during his time as an undergrad. Graduating Summa Cum Laude in 2024, Torres, who was inducted into the Gamma Sigma Epsilon Chemistry Honor Society in 2023, was a four-time Dean’s List member and the recipient of the Lee Y. Davidheiser Prize in Chemistry in 2024.
 
With his achievements extending far beyond the diamond and the classroom, Torres knocked it out of the park by bringing leadership to the Wagner campus and Staten Island community.
 
“We’ve done a lot as a team, but when our coach brought in Rocco DiMaggio from Team IMPACT to honor him and support him through his fight with cancer, it became very clear that there is more to life than baseball and academics,” said Torres.
 
Serving as a College Peer Tutor, he was Wagner’s baseball representative for the NEC’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) while also taking on the roles of Vice President of the college’s Gamma Sigma Epsilon Chemistry Honor Society and President of his school’s InterVarsity Christian Fellowship Group. Torres also volunteered his time to a plethora of organizations throughout his entire collegiate career, including the TCS New York City Marathon, Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk.
 
“At the end of the day, it’s about loving your neighbor as you would yourself, and any time you can leave a place better than how you found it, then the experiences you’ve made along the way were well worth it,” Torres added.
 
With Torres’ honor, the Seahawks have combined for 12 NEC Team Student-Athlete of the Year awards in the past 20 years on both the men’s and women’s side, including a nine-year run that included at least one honoree from the 2012-13 to the 2020-21 academic years.

NEC STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR RECIPIENTS

2025-26       Lukas Torres, Wagner (male team, baseball)
              Anastasia Lim, FDU (female team, tennis)
2024-25       Andrew Deardoff, Saint Francis U (male team, volleyball)              
              Olivia Ulam, Saint Francis U (female team, softball)
2023-24       Peyton Blain, Saint Francis U (male team, volleyball)
              Rachel Marsden, Saint Francis U (female team, softball)
2022-23       Sokol Ymeraj, St. Francis Brooklyn (male team, soccer)   
              Ashley Dana, CCSU (female team, cross country/track and field) 
2021-22       Harald Sollund, St. Francis Brooklyn (male team, soccer)
              Angie Rafter, CCSU (female team, cross country/track and field)
              Mekenzie Saban, Saint Francis U (female team, softball) 
2020-21       Djordje Spasic, St. Francis Brooklyn (male team, swimming and diving)               
              Tiffany Hanna, Wagner (female team, track and field) 
2019-20       Jonathan Besselink, Wagner (male team, cross country/track and field)
              Sara Phelan, Saint Francis U (female team, track and field)
2018-19       Evan McDonald, Fairleigh Dickinson (male team, baseball)
              Pascalle Tego, Wagner (female team, golf)
2017-18       Charlton Boyd, Wagner (male team, tennis)
              Dana Davis, Robert Morris (female team, lacrosse)
2016-17       Kyle Mummau, Bryant (male team, lacrosse)
              Brianna Tredway, Wagner (female team, softball)
2015-16       Max Vogt, Bryant (male team, tennis)
              Amanda Lucia, Wagner (female team, swimming)
2014-15       Phil Faccone, Wagner (male team, football)
              Nicole Sleith, Robert Morris (female team, softball)
2013-14       Meredith Ketchmark, Wagner (swimming)
2012-13       Steve Cioicci, Wagner (football)
2011-12       Julia Prantl, Fairleigh Dickinson (tennis)
2010-11       Katherine Bossardet, CCSU (cross country, track and field)
2009-10       Kundayi Mawema, Bryant (field hockey)
2008-09       Alexandra Tomlinson, Wagner (swimming)
2007-08       Tiffany Hahn, Monmouth (track and field)
2006-07       Erika Jacobs, Saint Francis U (cross country, track and field)
2005-06       Joy Gallagher, Wagner (basketball, softball)
2004-05       Beth Swink, Saint Francis U (basketball)
2003-04       Naomi Campano, Mount St. Mary's (lacrosse)
2002-03       Sabrina Mariani, CCSU (soccer) 

About the NEC
Now in its 45th season, the NEC is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of ten institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States including New York (#1), Chicago (#3), Boston (#9). Hartford/New Haven (#32) and Syracuse (#88). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 25 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 16 different NCAA Championships. NEC full member institutions include Central Connecticut, Chicago State, FDU, Le Moyne, LIU, Mercyhurst, New Haven, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.necsports.com) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, all @NECsports.