Senior men’s basketball star Jimmy Baron was named to the Lowe’s Senior CLASS All-Senior All-America first team. The Lowe’s Senior CLASS award, selected by a nationwide vote of coaches, media, and fans, is presented annually to college basketball’s outstanding NCAA Division I senior student-athlete. Baron was also a 2009 Portsmouth Invitational all-tournament selection after setting new single-game (9) and tournament (16) three-point records. He ranked second in scoring (19.3 ppg) over the three games. The Portsmouth Invitational, in its 57th year, is one of the major showcases for graduating seniors.

Jasmine Jennings became just the third URI women’s track & field student-athlete to capture a Championship of America title at the historic Penn Relays. On April 23, the senior from Warwick, R.I., won the hammer throw with a heave of 190-03 (58.00m). The competition was held at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

The University of Rhode Island has been well represented on the Top 10 Plays of the Day feature on ESPN’s SportsCenter. On Feb. 25, sophomore Marquis Jones’ game-winning layup in overtime over Dayton ranked as the top play of the day. Jimmy Baron made an appearance on the Top 10 list on April 3 after throwing a picture-perfect alley-oop pass in the College Slam Dunk Championship from halfway up the stands at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Rams’ outfielder Kenny Burns’ unbelievable catch, robbing a home run at Northeastern, was the No. 2 play of the day on April 20 and was replayed several times throughout the day on April 21.

The annual Senior Athletic Awards Banquet was held April 27 at Quidnessett Country Club in North Kingstown. Jimmy Baron (men’s basketball) received the Albert LeBoeuf Award and Jasmine Jennings (track & field) was presented with the Winifred B. Keaney Award. Both awards are given annually to the most outstanding graduating male and female student-athletes who have been role models in their collegiate careers while maintaining a high level of academic standing. Grace Hedstrom (tennis) and Mark Stevens (golf) were the 2009 Elizabeth Holmes Award winners. The Holmes award recognized the most outstanding graduating female and male student-athletes who combined exceptional scholastic achievement with outstanding athletic talent.