Samford Holds 11th-Annual SAMSPY Awards

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— The Samford athletics department held its 11th-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 Lauren Deaton from the volleyball team. The Male Rookie of the Year was presented to Samuel Strickland with baseball.

The Comeback Athlete of the Year award was given to Karisa Nelson of the track and field team. Josh Sharkey 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 John Staton from football. The Support Staff of the Year was given to Tyler Landolt from the strength and conditioning staff. Chad Balyo from the cross-country and track and field teams was named this year's Assistant Coach of the Year.

Samford shuttle driver Santia "Tito" Hare was named this year's Faculty/Staff Member of the Year. The Best Finish award went to Robert Allen for his game-winning three-pointer to secure the men's basketball team's win at Furman. The Best Upset award went to the baseball team for its win at seventh-ranked Florida State in the 2018 NCAA Tallahassee Regional.

The Play of the Year award went to Kelvin McKnight for his catch and long run for a touchdown on the team's first offensive play at Florida State. The Best Championship Performance award went to the volleyball team for winning the Southern Conference Tournament by defeating regular-season champion and 30^th-ranked ETSU. The Best Blooper award went to Mekhi Mayfield from softball.

The Most Outstanding Team award was given to the women's track and field team for winning its fourth-straight SoCon Indoor Championship. The Head Coach of the Year award was presented to Keylor Chan of volleyball for leading his team to the Southern Conference Tournament title and an NCAA Tournament bid.

The Best Female Athlete award went to Selena Popp from track and field. Devlin Hodges of football earned the Best Male Athlete award.

The biggest awards of the night were the Miss and Mr. Bulldog awards. These awards go to two senior student-athletes, one female and one male, who have excelled, not only on the field, but also in the classroom and in the community. This year's Miss Bulldog is Madison Couch from softball. Kyle Stuart from the baseball team earned the Mr. Bulldog award.

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

2019 SAMSPYs WINNERS
Female Academic Team of the Year
Soccer

Male Academic Team of the Year
Tennis

Female Rookie of the Year
Lauren Deaton, Volleyball

Male Rookie of the Year
Samuel Strickland, Baseball

Comeback Athlete of the Year
Karisa Nelson, Track and Field

Breakthrough Athlete of the Year
Josh Sharkey, Men's Basketball

Jim Griffin Award
John Staton, Football

Support Staff of the Year
Tyler Landolt, Strength and Conditioning

Assistant Coach of the Year
Chad Balyo, Cross-Country/Track and Field

Faculty/Staff Member of the Year
Santia "Tito" Hare

Best Finish
Robert Allen, Men's Basketball (Game-winning shot at Furman)

Best Upset
Baseball (Win at No. 7 Florida State in NCAA Regional)

Best Blooper
Mekhi Mayfield, Softball

Play of the Year
Kelvin McKnight (Long TD catch at Florida State)

Best Championship Performance
Volleyball (Winning SoCon Tournament)

Most Outstanding Team
Women's Indoor Track and Field

Head Coach of the Year
Keylor Chan, Volleyball

Best Female Athlete
Selena Popp (Track and Field)

Best Male Athlete
Devlin Hodges (Football)

Miss Bulldog
Madison Couch (Softball)

Mr. Bulldog
Kyle Stuart (Baseball)

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