Samford Holds Ninth-Annual SAMSPY Awards

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— The Samford athletics department held its ninth-annual SAMSPY Awards Monday evening at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham - The Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover.

The SAMSPY Awards are held to honor Samford's student-athletes, teams, coaches and administrators for their accomplishments throughout the year.

A total of 21 awards were given out at the event. The first awards were the Team Academic Awards. These awards were given to the teams, one male and one female, that posted the highest grade-point average in the past year. The men's and women's golf teams took home the Team Academic Awards.

The Female Rookie of the Year award was given to Allie Lourie from the soccer team. The Male Rookie of the Year was presented to Emmanuel Tait from track.

The Comeback Athlete of the Year award was given to Sam Pettway from football. Karel Hamilton, also from the football team was named the school's Breakthrough Athlete of the Year.

The Jim Griffin Award, which goes to an unsung hero, was awarded to Alex Peters from men's basketball. The Support Staff of the Year was given to Thomas Rohling from the strength and conditioning staff. Jake Headrick from the men's basketball team was named this year's Assistant Coach of the Year.

Garry Atkins was named this year's Faculty Member of the Year. The Best Finish award went to Ben Carrick from baseball for a walk-off home run to give the Bulldogs a victory over Alabama. The Best Upset award went to Karisa Nelson from track for winning the national championship in the indoor mile.

The Play of the Year award went to Erin Bognar of volleyball for the kill to win the Southern Conference Tournament. The Best Championship Performance award went to Nelson for her national championship win.

The Best Blooper award went to Rebecca Leonard and Abby Sweeney of softball.

The Most Outstanding Team award was given to softball team for winning its first SoCon title and NCAA Tournament appearance, and setting a program record with 40 wins. The Head Coach of the Year award was presented to Mandy Burford of the softball team.

Two student-athletes were honored as Co-Female Athletes of the Year. Nelson won the award after winning the school's first NCAA Division I national title. Jermaine Seoposenwe from soccer also won the award after representing her native South Africa in the 2016 Olympics.

The Best Male Athlete award was given to Tray Oates from the track and field team. Oates placed fourth at the Olympic trials. He also qualified for the NCAA Championships in both indoor and outdoor.

This year's Miss Bulldog is Ellen Riggins from women's basketball. Riggins was one of the leaders of the women's basketball team this season, playing every game at the "P" position and leading the team in rebounding. But her most impressive accomplishments are off the court. She serves as a Samford Ambassador, Howard College of Arts and Sciences Ambassador, and she is a member of Samford Recruitment Team and Theta Alpha Kappa National Honor Society. She also earned the Wheeler Award from the Howard College of Arts and Sciences. She is an active member and leader for TEDxSamfordU and for Samford's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

The Mr. Bulldog award was presented to Tyler Small from football. On the field, Small saw action in 11 of the football team's 12 games last season as a key contributor on special teams. Off the field, he was a leader in Younglife, RANSOM and Capernaum, working with special needs students. He volunteered at the Capernaum Special Needs Summer Camp, Younglife, and he worked with special needs students at Samford. During his four years at Samford, he has been a spiritual leader on the football team and in his fraternity, Sigma Nu.

Below is a list of all of Monday night's SAMSPY Awards winners.

2017 SAMSPYs WINNERS

Female Academic Team of the Year - Golf
Male Academic Team of the Year - Golf
Female Rookie of the Year – Allie Lourie, Soccer
Male Rookie of the Year – Emmanuel Tait, Track and Field
Comeback Athlete of the Year – Sam Pettway, Football
Breakthrough Athlete of the Year – Karel Hamilton, Football
Jim Griffin Award – Alex Peters, Men's Basketball
Support Staff of the Year – Thomas Rohling
Assistant Coach of the Year – Jake Headrick, Men's Basketball
Faculty Member of the Year – Garry Atkins
Best Finish – Ben Carrick, Baseball
Best Upset – Karisa Nelson, Track and Field
Play of the Year – Erin Bognar, Volleyball
Best Championship Performance – Karisa Nelson, Track and Field
Best Blooper – Rebecca Leonard and Abby Sweeney, Softball
Most Outstanding Team – Softball
Head Coach of the Year – Mandy Burford, Softball
Best Female Athlete – Karisa Nelson, Track and Field/Jermaine Seoposenwe, Soccer
Best Male Athlete – Tray Oates, Men's Track and Field
Miss Bulldog – Ellen Riggins, Women's Basketball
Mr. Bulldog – Tyler Small, Football

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