Samford Holds 10th-Annual SAMSPY Awards

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— The Samford athletics department held its 10th-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 soccer team won the Female Academic Team of the Year award, while men's tennis took the award on the male side.

The Female Rookie of the Year award was given to Maggie Johnston from the track and field team. The Male Rookie of the Year was presented to Mike Williams from football.

The Comeback Athlete of the Year award was given to Cody Shelton from the baseball team. Eric Adams from men's basketball was named the school's Breakthrough Athlete of the Year.

The Jim Griffin Award, which goes to an unsung hero, was awarded to Virginia McNeill from soccer. The Support Staff of the Year was given to Harold Goss, the associate athletic director for academics and compliance. Tyler Shrout from the baseball team was named this year's Assistant Coach of the Year.

Dennis Sansom, a professor in the philosophy department, was named this year's Faculty Member of the Year. The Best Finish award went to the football defense for an interception by Omari Williams to secure a win at fifth-ranked Wofford. The Best Upset award went to the volleyball team for their win at Indiana.

The Play of the Year award went to Kelvin McKnight for his catch and long run, making several defenders miss in a win over West Alabama. The Best Championship Performance award went to Marquis Barnes for his performance at the SoCon Championships for track. The Best Blooper award went to Gavin Gatreau of track and field.

The Most Outstanding Team award was given to the women's track and field team for winning its third-straight SoCon Indoor Championship. The Head Coach of the Year award was presented to Chris Hatcher of the football team for leading his squad to back-to-back NCAA Division I-FCS Playoff appearances.

The Best Female Athlete award went to Jermaine Seoposenwe from soccer. Seoposenwe will go down in Samford lore as one of the best players in school history. Not only is she the first Bulldog, in any sport, in the history of the athletic department, to compete in the Olympic Games, but she is also the school's all-time leader in goals, assists, points and game-winning goals. She also closed out her career as the back-to-back SoCon Player of the Year. Last season alone, she scored 13 goals, added nine assists and tallied four game-winning goals.

The Best Male Athlete award was given to football's Ahmad Gooden. Gooden took his game to another level during his junior season in 2017. He was named Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year, first team All-American and was a finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award that goes to the top defensive player in the nation at the FCS level. Gooden ranked second on the team and sixth in the Southern Conference in total tackles with 101. He also led the team and ranked second in the SoCon in tackles for loss with 15.5, and he tied for fourth in the league in sacks with 5.5.

This year's Miss Bulldog is Anna Maddox from soccer. Maddox, one of the top goalkeepers in school history, was a member of the 2017 All-SoCon Second-Team, as well as a First-Team All-SoCon member in both 2016 and 2015. An all-star in the classroom as well, she earned a pair of SoCon Student-Athlete of the Week honors, as well as a pair of SoCon Player of the Week awards. Additionally, she closed out her phenomenal career with a 0.91 goals-against average, while also being a six-time member of the Dean's List and volunteering with Samford Gives Back, Samford Spring Break Service Immersion Trip, Give Kids the World, Jay's Hope Summer Camp, Northstar Soccer Club and the Austin Hatcher Foundation.

The Mr. Bulldog award was presented to Justin Ghavami from men's tennis. During his time at Samford, Ghavami has exemplified what it means to be a true student-athlete. On the court, Ghavami has been one of the leaders of the team as a senior, posting a record of 9-6 at the No. 2 singles spot. In doubles, he and partner Rossouw Norval are 6-2 at the No. 2 position. He has served as a co-leader of RANSOM and has been heavily involved in SAAC, to go along with volunteering with several organizations. An engineering physics major, Ghavami is a two-time member of the SoCon Academic Honor Roll and a two-time member of the Academic All-SoCon team.

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

2018 SAMSPYs WINNERS
Female Academic Team of the Year- Soccer 3.49 GPA
Male Academic Team of the Year-Tennis 3.45 GPA
Female Rookie of the Year-Maggie Johnston
Male Rookie of the Year-Mike Williams
Comeback Athlete of the Year-Cody Shelton
Breakthrough Athlete of the Year-Eric Adams
Jim Griffin Award-Virginia McNeill
Support Staff of the Year-Harold Goss
Assistant Coach of the Year-Tyler Shrout
Faculty Member of the Year - Dennis Sansom
Best Finish-Football Defense
Best Upset - Volleyball
Play of the Year-Kelvin McKnight
Best Championship Performance-Marquis Barnes
Best Blooper - Gavin Gatreau
Most Outstanding Team-Women's Track & Field
Head Coach of the Year - Chris Hatcher
Best Female Athlete-Jermaine Seoposenwe
Best Male Athlete-Ahmad Gooden
Miss Bulldog-Anna Maddox
Mr. Bulldog-Justin Ghavami

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