Wingate SAC Athlete of the Year History
Rock Hill, S.C.----Wingate University sophomore golfer
Amely Bochaton has added another huge piece of hardware to her overflowing trophy case. The Evian Les Bains, France native has been named the 2025-2026 South Atlantic Conference Female Athlete of the Year, officials announced Thursday morning. The SAC Athletes of the Year are voted on by the league's athletic directors.
"It is truly exciting to see Amely's accomplishments be honored by the South Atlantic Conference," former Wingate head golf coach
JD Lamm says. "She's the best player I have ever seen in Division II women's golf and she will likely go down as the best to ever do it at this level. I am so proud of Amely and the work she put in this past year. It was a pleasure to watch. I am very grateful that she allowed me to be a small part of her college golf career."
The Bulldogs have now collected 15 SAC Athlete of the Year trophies, the most in league history. Bochaton is the first Wingate women's golfer to take home the hardware. Bochaton and Wingate men's track/cross country star
Luca Poppe give Wingate an Athlete of the Year sweep. The last time the 'Dogs had both Athletes of the Year in the same year was in 2011, when
Stormi Gale (volleyball) and
Dodson McPherson (baseball) took home the hardware. The 'Dogs also swept the awards in 2008, when basketball stars
Anna Atkinson and
Sean Barnette won the honors. The awards have now been swept by one school five times since the conference started the honor in 1993; Wingate has three of the five sweeps, while Tusculum has the other two. The most recent Athlete of the Year from Wingate was
Hamza Chahid in 2024, while the last Female Athlete of the Year from the 'Dogs came in 2023, when volleyball standout
Shannon Kasprak took home the trophy. Bochaton is only the third women's golfer to be named the SAC Athlete of the Year.
Bochaton has piled up the hardware since arriving on campus in the fall of 2024. She was named the 2025 WGCA National Player and Freshman of the Year, while repeating as the National Player of the Year in 2026. Bochaton was also the SAC Freshman of the Year in 2025, while winning league Player of the Year honors in each of her first two seasons. The first team All-SAC and All-Region honoree is a two-time WGCA first team All-American. Bochaton has been one of 11 finalists for the Honda Division II National Athlete of the Year in each of her first two seasons. She has also been named the Wingate University Female Athlete of the Year in each of her first two seasons. She wrapped up her sophomore season by winning the individual national title by 13 shots, firing rounds of 68, 67 and 68. For the second straight year, Bochaton was the nation's top-ranked player throughout the entire season. By the end of the year, she was over 30 points ahead of the number two player in the nation, which was the same game from the number two player to the number 22 player in the country.
Bochaton played in 13 stroke play events in 2025-26, winning seven of those tournaments while finishing in the top four in all 13 tourneys. In addition to the seven wins, she had three runner-up finishes, a pair of third-place showings and one fourth-place finish. Bochaton shot par or better in 31 of her 41 rounds, breaking her own Wingate and SAC record with a 70.7 stroke average. She had 16 rounds in the 60s on the season.
Bochaton kicked off her sophomore year with a win at the South Regional preview (72-72-71) followed by a runner-up finish at Eckerd (70-72-68). She won again in her third tourney at St. Simons Intercollegiate (72-70-67), followed by a third and second-place finish to wrap up the fall.
Bochaton started the spring with wins at Hilton Head (74-66-69) and the Lady Moc Classic (73-68-72), while finishing third in the home tournament. She won again at the Grand Harbor Classic (71-68-70) before defending her title at the SAC Tournament (70-75-70). She won her match in the SAC semis and SAC championships, while finishing runner-up at regionals (72-69-77). She then rolled to her 13-shot win at nationals (68-67-68). Bochaton won her match in the national quarterfinals and national semifinals.
Bochaton's dominant play led the Bulldogs to a record-shattering season. Wingate won an incredible 10 of 13 stroke play tournaments on the season, adding a runner-up finish. The 'Dogs were the #1 team in the nation in every poll in 2025-26, capturing their second straight SAC title. The Bulldogs went on to capture the first region championship in program history. Wingate then won the stroke play portion at nationals by 21 shots and advance to the national semifinals for the first time in program history.
In her two years at Wingate, Bochaton has played in 26 tournaments, winning 13 of those. She has 25 career top-10 finishes, with 22 top-five showings. She posted a 70.8 stroke average in her freshman season, posting a score of par or better in 27 of 38 rounds. That gives Bochaton 58 rounds of par or better in 79 rounds, including 27 rounds in the 60s. She has Wingate's all-time record 18, 36 and 54-hole scoring records. Bochaton has one round of 65, three rounds of 66 and seven rounds of 67, giving her the top 11 rounds in program history.
Wingate all-time SAC Athletes of the Year
| NAME |
SPORT |
YEAR |
| Amely Bochaton |
Women's Golf |
2025-26 |
| Luca Poppe |
Cross Country/Track & Field |
2025-26 |
| Hamza Chahid |
Cross Country/Track & Field |
2023-24 |
| Shannon Kasprak |
Volleyball |
2022-23 |
| Willie Grieco |
Men's Lacrosse |
2021-22 |
| Jade Montgomery |
Women's Soccer |
2014-15 |
| Jade Montgomery |
Women's Soccer |
2013-14 |
| Jade Montgomery |
Women's Soccer |
2012-13 |
| Dodson McPherson |
Baseball |
2010-11 |
| Stormi Gale |
Volleyball |
2010-11 |
| Sean Barnette |
Men's Basketball |
2007-08 |
| Anna Atkinson |
Women's Basketball |
2007-08 |
| Sean Barnette |
Men's Basketball |
2006-07 |
| Darren Hayes |
Baseball |
1994-95 |
| Tonya Roper |
Women's Basketball |
1993-94 |
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