BIRMINGHAM, Ala. –The Samford athletics department held its 13th-annual SAMSPY Awards Monday evening at the Pete Hanna Center.
 
This is the first in-person SAMSPYs held since 2019, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 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 cross-country took the award on the male side.
 
The Female Newcomer of the Year award was given to Kenya McQuirter from the volleyball team. The Male Newcomer of the Year was presented to Ques Glover with men's basketball.
 
The Comeback Athlete of the Year award was given to Zoë Perrin of the soccer team. Mary Raymond from the soccer squad was named the school's Breakthrough Athlete of the Year.
 
The Jim Griffin Award, which goes to an unsung hero, was awarded to Kaden Dreier from baseball. The Support Staff of the Year was given to Alexis Roberts from Academic Services. Chandler Merkerson from the women's basketball team was named this year's Assistant Coach of the Year. The Golden Can Award was new to the SAMSPYs this year, stemming from SAAC spearheading a can food drive during the spring of 2022 to benefit Feeding Alabama. The winning team was the softball squad.
 
Samford President Dr. Beck A. Taylor was named this year's Fan of the Year. The Best Finish award went to Towns King and Max Pinto from baseball for hitting a pair of two-run home runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Bulldogs to the 2021 Southern Conference Tournament title. The Best Upset award went to the soccer team for its 2-0 win at Auburn in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
The Play of the Year award went to Montrell Washington for his 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown at Florida. The Best Championship Performance award went to the outdoor track and field teams for sweeping the Southern Conference Championships.

 
The Most Outstanding Team award was given to the soccer team for winning an eighth-straight SoCon regular season title, winning the SoCon Tournament and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for just the second time in program history. The Head Coach of the Year award was presented to Bucky McMillan from the men's basketball team for engineering an impressive turnaround season that saw the team win 21 games and reach the semifinals of the Southern Conference Tournament.
 
The Best Female Athlete award went to Andrea Cournoyer from the women's basketball team. Justin Stuckey from track and field earned Best Male Athlete honors.
 
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 Morayo Bhadmos from tack and field. Armond Lloyd from the football team earned the Mr. Bulldog award.
 
Below is a list of all of Monday night's SAMSPY Awards winners.

2022 SAMSPY AWARD WINNERS

Female Academic Team: Soccer

Male Academic Team: Cross-Country

Female Newcomer Of The Year: Kenya McQuirter, Volleyball

Male Newcomer Of The Year: Ques Glover, Men's Basketball

Comeback Athlete Of The Year: Zoë Perrin, Soccer

Breakthrough Athlete Of The Year: Mary Raymond, Soccer

Jim Griffin Award Winner: Kaden Dreier, Baseball

Support Staff Of The Year: Alexis Roberts, Academic Services

Assistant Coach Of The Year: Chandler Merkerson

Golden Can Award: Softball

Fan Of The Year: President Dr. Beck A. Taylor

Best Finish: Towns King and Max Pinto, Baseball

Best Upset: Soccer

Play Of The Year: Montrell Washington, Football

Best Championship Performance: Outdoor Track and Field

Most Outstanding Team: Soccer (Fall)

Head Coach Of The Year: Bucky McMillan, Men's Basketball

Best Female Athlete: Andrea Cournoyer, Women's Basketball

Best Male Athlete: Justin Stuckey, Track and Field

Miss Bulldog: Morayo Bhadmos, Track and Field

Mr. Bulldog: Armond Lloyd, Football