LOUDONVILLE, NY – One of Siena Softball's five members of the 2020 senior class has been recognized as the Leo Dufort Student Athlete of the Month. Senior Lauren Sabihon was given the award for the month of May, which rounds out the 2019-20 academic year for the department.
A native of Torrance, California, Sabihon started in 12 of 13 games during Siena's abbreviated 2020 campaign. The outfielder batted .303 with 10 hits and hour runs during that time, including a pair of doubles, nine RBI and a home run against Power-5 opponent California. A four-year starter, she finished her career in Green and Gold with a .258 batting average and 89 hits in 140 appearances.
A psychology major with a 3.84 cumulative GPA, Sabihon has been a member of Siena's 4.0 Club for a perfect term mark on multiple occasions. She is a three-time member of the MAAC All-Academic Team and has also received MAAC Academic Honor Roll, ECAC Presidential Honor Roll and NFCA Scholar All-America honors. She was the team's nominee for the Senior CLASS Award this season and recently was named an Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar for the second straight year. Sabihon was also a member of Siena's Student Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) throughout college.
The Leo Dufort Student Athlete of the Month Award is presented nine times annually (September-May) throughout the academic year. The award recognizes exemplary achievements in both academics and athletics. The late Leo Dufort received a B.S. in marketing and management from Siena in August of 1977. His entire academic career was completed on a part-time basis beginning in the spring of 1961, as a married adult while at the same time raising five children. He passed away suddenly of a heart attack while cross country skiing in February of 1993. His wife Jeanine wanted to do something to immortalize his memory. The original plaque was donated to athletics and the department began the Leo Dufort Student Athlete of the Month Award to help carry out his legacy. Dufort graduated from Catholic Central High School in 1954 and was a Navy Veteran (USS Bennington) who worked for JL Hammett Co. at the time of his death.
