Chigha & Casolo Earn Student-Athlete of the Week Honors
Alain Chigha
Quinnipiac University
Men’s Basketball
Fifth-year senior Alain Chigha used his defense to nearly spark an historic comeback on Sunday for the Quinnipiac men’s basketball team, which rallied from a 26-point deficit down to four before falling short in a 78-72 defeat to Maine on Sunday. Chigha had seven steals, a career best and just one shy of the school record set by Jeremy Bishop against Hofstra in 2001-02, to go along with seven points and six rebounds. Chigha, who moved to the United States from Cameroon at the age of 15 knowing only two words of English, graduated in the spring with a degree in sociology and is currently pursuing his MBA in Quinnipiac’s School of Business.
Julia Casolo
Niagara University
Swimming & Diving
Julia Casolo, a senior tourism and event management major, has started her final season with the Purple Eagles women’s swimming & diving team on a high note. Casolo has one individual win in all four of Niagara’s meets, including two first-place finishes in the 100 fly and 100 free, and has helped two relay teams to first-place finishes this season. The York, Penn. native has excelled in the 100 fly at consecutive conference championships, taking first place at the 2016 MAAC Swimming & Diving Championships - with a time of 57.29 that sits second-best in program history - before finishing second in 2017. Casolo holds four Niagara program records as a member of record-setting relay teams in the 200 and 400 medley relays and the 200 and 400 free relays.