ORONO, Maine – The University of Maine Athletics Department is proud to announce that Cassandra Mascarenhas of the field hockey team and Mitch Fossier of the men's ice hockey team are the recipients of the 2020 'M' Club Dean Smith awards.
 
The 'M' Club Dean Smith award is the most prestigious award presented annually to the top male and female student-athletes at the University of Maine. To be considered for this award, athletes are nominated by their coaches and must have demonstrated outstanding academic and athletic achievement, be of outstanding character and a contributor and leader within their community.
 
It was in 1992 that the 'M' Club named the award after former UMaine student-athlete standout Dean Smith. In 1990, Smith had the top grade-point average among electrical engineering majors at UMaine and was the Northeast Atlantic Conference scoring leader in men's basketball. He was a three-time Academic All-American, and he received the prestigious NCAA Walter Byers Award as the nation's top scholar-athlete.
 
Mascarenhas, a junior captain from Mississauga, Ontario, is double majoring in management and accounting and currently boasts a 3.813 grade point average. On the turf, Mascarenhas excelled while earning 2019 America East Defensive Player of the Year honors. The junior defender was selected to the 2019 National Field Hockey Coaches' Association (NFHCA) All-American Third Team while also earning a spot on the 2019 America East All-Conference First Team. Mascarenhas, a NFHCA First Team All-Region and America East All-Tournament team selection in 2019, represented her native country as a member of Team Canada during its tour of China in 2019 while also competing throughout her career for the Canadian Under-21 team. 
 
In the classroom, Mascarenhas garnered a spot on the 2019 America East All-Academic team. A three-time America East Commissioner's Honor Roll selection, Mascarenhas has earned Dean's List status in five semesters while also being selected to the ZAG Field Hockey/National Coaches Association Division-I Academic squad on three occasions. A member of the UMaine Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Mascarenhas spent time in the summer of 2018 volunteering at an orphanage in Africa. While she's in Orono, Mascarenhas volunteers her time at high school field hockey clinics and also gives back volunteer coaching when she is back in her homeland of Ontario.
 
Fossier, a senior captain from Alpharetta, Georgia,  has earned a 3.898 grade point while  majoring in New Media with a Music minor.  Fossier, who recently became the 56^th player in UMaine's storied history to eclipse the 100-point plateau for his career, earned Hockey East All-Conference Third Team accolades in 2018-19. He led the Black Bears in points during his junior season and is also atop Maine's point scoring list so far this year. 
 
The senior forward has boasted high-ranks in the classroom during his career at UMaine, leading to three selections to the Hockey East All-Academic team, seven Dean's List honors and three Presidential Scholar accolades. In 2019, he was recognized as a Hockey East Top Scholar, boasting a 4.0 grade point average. When he's not in the classroom or at the rink, Fossier spends numerous hours giving back to the community.   He organized the "Tip a Cop" event at a local restaurant with the Orono Police Department with  the proceeds going  to the Special Olympics. For three summers Fossier donated his time as a counselor for a high school church group in Georgia.  While in Orono, he spent time working with the local YMCA for Healthy Kids Day and with a local church helped to bring less fortunate families to the UMaine Men's Ice Hockey games. 
 
The M Club, founded in 1932, is the letter winner association of the University of Maine and has been a fixture in supporting athletics since then. Varsity athletic competitions began at the University in 1881, and nearly 20,000 men and women have earned their letter in more than 30 different sports. It is through active letter winner and honorary member dues that the club has given financial support back to the athletic development for 88 years. The club's motto reads; "dedicated to Maine Athletics: past, present and future."
 
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