Aaron Dashiell went into the 1998 football season as an unknown.

The University of Maine staff faced the prospect of having to replace star safety Derek Carter. They chose Dashiell, who had proven himself a solid cornerback during 1997, for the task.

Dashiell responded better than coach Jack Cosgrove could ever have expected. The 5-foot-11, 175-pound junior from Plainfield, N.J., blossomed in his new role, leading the Black Bears with 100 tackles and six interceptions.

His performance was so outstanding that he continues to garner national recognition during the postseason. Dashiell recently has added two new honors to his lengthy list. He has been named an ESPN/USA Today All-America first-team pick and was a second-team choice for The Sports Network’s Division I-AA squad.

“It’s a great credit to him,” Cosgrove said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a kid make as much progress at a position in one year, the spring through the fall.”

Cosgrove said Dashiell embraced the move from cornerback to safety, taking whatever steps where necessary to make sure he could meet the challenge.

“That’s a pretty big transition, but Aaron’s a great worker,” Cosgrove said. “He paid a major price for this to happen and I’m comfortable knowing he’s going to continue to try to set this kind of great example.”

In addition to the most recent honors, Dashiell has been recognized as an Associated Press All-America second-team pick, and as a first-team selection of the Atlantic 10, the ECAC and the New England Football Writers.

Cosgrove also praised Dashiell’s efforts last season because the safety plays such an important role in UMaine’s attacking defensive scheme.

“He had a lot of his interceptions early in the year, then people stopped testing him,” Cosgrove said. “He also did a great job of being a run-support guy and wound up being our leading tackler. It’s always comforting having an All-American guy coming back to play for you.”

Jennifer Kunz of Hampden continues to excel as a member of the Hamilton College swim team.

Kunz, a sophomore, swam on the Continentals’ victorious 200-yard freestyle and 400-yard medley relay squads at the recent Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association championships.

Aaric Friend of Pittsfield is coming off a successful season for the Nichols College football team.

Friend, a former standout at Maine Central Institute, finished third in tackles for the Bison with 63. He registered one interception.

Friend also earned All-New England Football Conference second-team accolades as a punter, averaging 37.3 yards per kick.