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WUSPYS Nominees Information
12 Years of WUSPYS Winners
Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University Athletic Department hosted the 12th annual WUSPYS Awards show Monday night in Austin Auditorium, with the Blue Carpet show taking place an hour before the show in Cuddy Arena. A total of 18 WUSPYS awards were handed out on Monday, all of which are listed below. In addition, over 60 team awards were handed out at the beginning of Monday night's festivities. You can also check out the
full WUSPYS show and the
Blue Carpet Interviews, along with this year's version of
Pros vs. Joes. Fans can also
check out the nomination announcement for a full list of all of the nominees and all of their accomplishments. Fans can also check out all of the
past WUSPYS winners here.
FEMALE BREAKTHROUGH ATHLETE | CLAIRE FUCHS, LACROSSE
- Fuchs more than doubled her point total in 2024 and tripled her draw controls for the 'Dogs
- Has 22 goals, 28 assists and 64 draw controls this year after 13 goals, 10 assists and 18 DCs last year
- Earned first team All-SAC honors for her efforts, first all-conference accolade of her career
- Ranks second on the SAC champion Bulldogs in draw controls, assists and points
Other Nominees:
Nina Azirovic, Swimming
Lauren Sutcliffe, Women's Golf
Tamar Veltman, Triathlon
MALE BREAKTHROUGH ATHLETE | CAM HARRIS, BASEBALL
- After hitting .172 last year (5-for-29), Harris is among the league's top hitters this season
- The sophomore is hitting .402 on the year with a team-best 70 hits
- Harris ranks fourth in the SAC in hits, sixth in average and 11th in total bases
- Leads the team with 23 multi-hit games
Other Nominees:
Dontorian Best, Football
Titouan Le Grix, Cross Country
Corbin Pack, Basketball
MALE NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR | KENDALL TAYLOR, BASKETBALL
- Taylor earned 3rd Team All-SAC honors in his first season with the SAC champion Bulldogs
- Ranked third on the team with 15.8 points per game and second with 6.5 rebounds per game
- Shot 52 percent from the field and 82 percent at the free throw line, ranking second with 85 assists
- Scored in double figures in 23 of 30 games; 10 games with 20 plus points, had 39 against Anderson
Other Nominees:
Ricardo Barbosa, Cross Country / Track & Field
Harry Bircumshaw, Soccer
Jordan Hyland, Golf
Breon Ishmael, Baseball
Andres Martijena, Swimming
Thomas Sullivan, Lacrosse
FEMALE NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR | EVA SISKA, TENNIS
- SAC Player of the Year earned 1st Team All-SAC singles and doubles honors
- Nation's 36th-ranked singles player is 17-1 at #1 singles, going 11-0 in league play
- 16-3 record at #1 doubles, going 12-0 in league play
- Helped lead regular season champs to a 19-2 overall record, going 12-0 in the SAC
Other Nominees:
Manu Baptista Felipe, Soccer
Fedra Florentin, Track & Field
Amber Rowoldt, Volleyball
PLAY OF THE YEAR | BROOKS BENTLEY 75-YARD TD PASS TO EVAN MCCRAY
- Wingate trailed 34-30 against #7 Lenoir-Rhyne with under a minute to go
- Bentley threw it deep down the left sideline and found McCray
- He made the catch and took off to the end zone to give Wingate the big home win
Other Nominees:
Pedro Santos 90th-minute game-winner clinches SAC title
Caroline Peters deep strike at Emory & Henry
Josh Massey game-winner at Anderson
Men's Cross Country finishes 1-7 at XC Regionals
GAME OF THE YEAR | MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY WINS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
- The Bulldog men claimed the third NCAA team title in Wingate history, taking home the title in Joplin, Mo.
- Hamza Chahid was fourth, while Soheil Boufrizi was 10th and Ricardo Barbosa finished 24th
- Cas Kopmels and Titouan Le Grix added top-30 finishes as WU edged Colorado Mines by nine points
Other Nominees:
Women's Cross Country wins NCAA Southeast Regionals
Men's Basketball wins OT thriller against Catawba in battle of SAC unbeatens
Women's Basketball vs. Carson-Newman (SAC Championship Game)
Both Swim teams roll to SAC titles
Acrobatics & Tumbling pick up victory in first-ever meet
Men's Tennis wins SAC Tournament title for second straight year
UPSET OF THE YEAR | FOOTBALL DEFEATS #7 LENOIR-RHYNE
- LR came to Irwin Belk Stadium 8-0 on the year, ranked 7th in the nation
- The Bears took a 34-30 lead with a minute to go, but Wingate had the answer
- Brooks Bentley's 75-yard TD strike to Evan McCray put the 'Dogs on top for good
Other Nominees:
Men's Soccer defeats #4 Limestone
Men's Basketball defeats #23 Lincoln Memorial
Women's Basketball defeats #13 Catawba in SAC Tourney Semifinals
Women's Golf defeats #3 Findlay & #4 Anderson to win Surratt Memorial title
Women's Tennis takes down #10 Columbus State
COMEBACK OF THE YEAR | MEN'S BASKETBALL VS. CARSON-NEWMAN
- In a season full of wild wins, the home victory against Carson-Newman was at the top for MBB
- C-N built a 19-point lead 11 minutes in, but the 'Dogs chipped away the rest of the day
- The lead was still 10 with 7:08 to go, but WU ended the game on a 16-5 run
- A Donell Nixon stepback three with two seconds left gave WU its first lead since a 6-5 advantage
Other Nominees:
Volleyball vs. Augusta
Women's Basketball vs. #4 Catawba
Softball vs. Emmanuel
BEST CHAMPIONSHIP PERFORMANCE | HAMZA CHAHID AT INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Chahid won the national title in the 5,000 Meters, the third NCAA championship of his career
- He added a fourth-place finish in the 3,000 Meters for his fourth first team All-American trophy
Other Nominees:
Hannah Clark (SAC Tournament MVP)
Lucie Andrews (SAC Swimmer of the Meet)
Damir Ipkaev (SAC Swimmer of the Meet)
BULLDOG SPIRIT AWARD | RAYAH GIVENS, VOLLEYBALL
Other Nominees:
Porfirio Acosta, Football
Charlie Campbell, Men's Golf
Yazmin Cowley, Women's Soccer
Rayah Givens, Volleyball
Katy Kahlich, Softball
MEN'S TEAM OF THE YEAR | CROSS COUNTRY
- Won NCAA National Championship along with SAC and Southeast Region titles
- Had SAC Runner of the Year, top seven Region finishers and had five All-Americans
Other Nominees:
Basketball
Soccer
Swimming
Tennis
Track & Field
WOMEN'S TEAM OF THE YEAR | SOFTBALL
- Won second straight SAC regular season title, going 44-7 overall and 22-2 in the SAC
- Won 25 of their last 26 of the regular season, ranked #7 in the nation, 92 wins last two years
Other Nominees:
Basketball
Cross Country
Lacrosse
Softball
Track & Field
Triathlon
Swimming
Tennis
Volleyball
FRESHMAN MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR | BROOKS BENTLEY, FOOTBALL
- Bentley was named the SAC Freshman of the Year, taking over as the starting QB four games in
- Threw for 1,834 yards and 13 TDs, adding 141 rush yards and four scores, 66 percent completion %
- Earned national Player of the Week honors for his 335 passing yards and four TDs against #7 LR
Other Nominees:
Sean Clark, Lacrosse
Lukas Ehrle, Track & Field
Damir Ipkaev, Swimming
Pablo Pozos, Soccer
FRESHMAN FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR | SYDNEY MORLAND, VOLLEYBALL
- Earned a spot on the All-SAC Freshman team for the SAC champion Bulldogs
- Piled up 195 kills with a .354 hitting percentage, adding 49 blocks on the season
- Ranked fourth in the SAC in hitting percentage, helping the 'Dogs rank fourth nationally in hitting %
Other Nominees:
Ona Alonso, Cross Country
Trinity Breedlove, Women's Basketball
Vera Karlsson, Swimming
Novy Schrijvers, Field Hockey
GEDDINGS AWARD (TOP OVERALL STUDENT-ATHLETE) | TREVOR GRANT, FOOTBALL
- SAC Scholar-Athlete in back-to-back years; 2023 Geddings Award winner
- Semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy each of the last two years
- Had 75 career receptions for 1,019 yards and 13 touchdowns in his WU career
- Earned his undergrad degree majoring in Accounting and minoring in Finance, 3.975 GPA
- Member of Alpha Chi national honor society; serves with FCA and is a SAAC member
Other Nominees:
Owen Marshall, Men's Soccer
Tatjana Mense, Cross Country
Bastian Mrochen, Cross Country
Caroline Peters, Men's Soccer
Jack Wisniewski, Men's Swimming
MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR | HAMZA CHAHID, CROSS COUNTRY / TRACK & FIELD
- Chahid won the national title in the 5,000 Meters at the Indoor championships; third national title
- Finished fourth at the Cross Country National Championships, leading the 'Dogs to the title
- Earned first team All-American honors with fourth-place finish in the 3,000 Meters at Indoors
Other Nominees:
Brett Adams, Baseball
Marquise Fleming, Football
Willie Grieco, Lacrosse
Donell Nixon, Basketball
Pedro Santos, Soccer
FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR | LEAH KNOWLES, LACROSSE
- SAC Midfielder of the Year; third straight SAC Player of the Year award
- Two-time All-American is WU all-time leader in goals, points, draw controls and caused turnovers
- Second in the SAC in goals and CTs, third in draw controls and fourth in points
FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR | MAGGIE YOUNG, VOLLEYBALL
- SAC Player of the Year; AVCA & D2CCA Region Player of the Year, SAC Scholar-Athlete
- D2CCA second team All-American, AVCA third team AA ranked seventh in the nation in hitting %
- 2.27 kills & 0.82 blocks per set, with a .412 hitting percentage; WU all-time leader in career hitting %
Other Nominees:
Lucie Andrews, Swimming
Savanna Brooks, Softball
Valerie Daehler, Track & Field
Julia Kekkonen, Triathlon
Chloe Kosmrlj, Tennis
TEAM AWARD WINNERS
Men's Soccer Team Awards
Offensive MVP - Pablo Pozos
Defensive MVP - Pedro Santos
Women's Soccer Team Awards
Offensive MVP - Caroline Peters
Defensive MVP - Sascha Larsen
Football Team Awards
MVP - Marquise Fleming
Leadership Award - Noah Bell
Volleyball Team Awards
MVP - Maggie Young
Coaches Award - Maggie Mullen
Men's Cross Country Team Awards
MVP - Hamza Chahid
Most Improved - Titouan Le Grix
Women's Cross Country Team Awards
MVP - Mollie Scott
Most Improved - Sira Bo
Field Hockey Team Awards
Offensive MVP - Rylie Cordrey
Defensive MVP - Novy Schrijvers
Men's Basketball Team Awards
Defensive MVP - Taylor Bell
Leadership Award - Vontrez Roberts
Women's Basketball Team Awards
Johnny Jacumin Leadership Award - Bryanna Troutman
Tough as Nails Award - Jaia Wilson
Men's Swimming Team Awards
Norman Family Most Valuable Swimmer - Damir Ipkaev
Kevin Polansky Live Life, Love Life Award - Alex Smyre
Women's Swimming Team Awards
Norman Family Most Valuable Swimmer - Nina Azirovic
Bridget Beth Melvin Award - Grace Wilson
Men's Track & Field Team Awards
Track Performer of the Year - Elijah Compton
Field Performer of the Year - Dequan Thompson
Women's Track & Field Team Awards
Track Performer of the Year - Dounia Routbi
Field Performer of the Year - Valerie Daehler
Acrobatics & Tumbling Team Awards
MVP - Bella Crapis
Coaches Award - Ava Wolff
Sports Performance Awards
Iron Dog Award - Darius Weathers
Iron Dog Award - Hailey McLaughlin
Iron Pup Award - Joe Reddish
Iron Pup Award - Analiese Baldauf
Cheerleading Awards
MVP - Emani Davis
MVP - Suzie Broom
Athletic Communications Awards
Athletic Communications MVP - Colby Holmes
Athletic Communications MVP - Julia Hamilton
Baseball Team Awards
Position Player of the Year - Brett Adams
Pitcher of the Year - Brent Walls
Softball Team Awards
Player of the Year - Savanna Brooks
EAT Award - Ragan Liles
Men's Lacrosse Team Awards
Offensive MVP - Willie Grieco
Defensive MVP - Johnny Salamone
Women's Lacrosse Team Awards
Player of the Year - Leah Knowles
Defensive Player of the Year - Krysta Churns
Men's Tennis Team Awards
MVP - Florian Walcher
Coaches Award - Petar Basic Palkovic
Women's Tennis Team Awards
MVP - Chloe Kosmrlj
Coaches Award - Annika Hakovirta
Men's Triathlon Awards
Most Outstanding Performer - Jake Baugher
Top Newcomer - Humberto Castañeiras Jenner
Women's Triathlon Awards
Most Outstanding Performer - Tamar Veltman
Top Newcomer - Katja Krenn
Men's Golf Team Awards
MVP - Colin Dutton
Coaches Award - Jordan Hyland
Women's Golf Team Awards
MVP - Jess Brown
Coaches Award - Lauren Sutcliffe
