LOUDONVILLE, NY – Recipients of the newly named Leo and Jeannine Dufort Student-Athletes of the Month Award were given to basketball standouts Brendan Coyle and Teresa Seppala of the Siena Men and Women's Basketball teams for the month of December to close out 2024.
 
Coyle, the junior from Niskayuna, NY, earned a 3.92 term GPA to make the President's List this past spring. The finance major now holds a 3.68 cumulative GPA. The MAAC All-Academic Team and two-time MAAC Honor Roll selection has had a breakout season, nearly quadrupling his points per game production up from 3.0 to 11.7 while shooting at a white-hot .419 clip from beyond the arc (44-of-105) to go with career-highs of 4.3 rebounds and 32.7 minutes per game. 
 
The 6-foot-7, 205-pound forward has set new career highs in several categories including 3-pointers with five made and rebounds with nine on Dec. 8 at Canisius. The team captain also set a new career high mark for points in a game with 20 and in minutes played with 45 versus Iona this past Sunday.   
 
Seppala, the junior from Tampere, Finland, earned a 3.85 term GPA this past spring to make the Dean's List. The psychology major holds a 3.41 cumulative GPA. A member of the MAAC All-Academic Team and two-time member of the MAAC Honor Roll, Seppala thrives on the court as well. The All-MAAC First Team selection has increased her scoring average from 14.1 to 19.6 points per game while shooting a lofty .433 from the 3-point line (26-of-60) and .971 (34-of-35) from the free throw line.  Additionally, she's averaging team-highs of 6.9 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game. Seppala needs 82 points to become the 30^th player in program history to record at least 1,000 points. 
 
The Leo and Jeannine 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 six children. He passed away suddenly in 1993. His wife Jeannine wanted to do something to immortalize his memory. The original plaque was donated to athletics and the school 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 which is where he met his high school sweetheart, Jeannine Snyder.  Among his many accomplishments, Leo was extremely active in youth sports throughout his life and was a Navy Veteran stationed on the USS Bennington. The name of the award was updated in December 2024 to also honor Leo's wife, Jeannine Dufort, and her many years of dedicated and loving service to Siena College. It was often said that Jeannine was one the most knowledgeable people on campus during her years of service. Jeannine served as the secretary to presidents Rev. Hugh Hines, Rev. William McConville, and Rev. Kevin Mackin. Her love for the students was endless. A short time after Jeannine retired, she was awarded the title of Honorary Franciscan (complete with her Franciscan robe). Jeannine resides at Shaker Pointe in Latham.