Clarksville, TN – The Austin Peay State University (APSU) athletics department celebrated the 2022-23 year by honoring its top performers on the field, in the classroom, and in the community at the sixth annual ESPEAYs, Monday, in the Winfield Dunn Center.
Colby Wilson served as master of ceremonies for the second-consecutive year, hosting a night that was filled with spectacular nominees and memories to celebrate another remarkable year in Austin Peay State University athletics.
Looking first to the team award, women’s basketball was named Team of the Year after a historic and record-setting run in their debut season in the ASUN Conference. Due to her team’s success both on and off the court, women’s basketball head coach Brittany Young also was named the Coach of the Year in just her second season at Austin Peay State University.
Rounding out the awards for the women’s basketball team, Shamari Hale was named the Women’s Newcomer of the Year. Hale was unanimously named the ASUN Sixth Player of the Year in her first season at Austin Peay State University, she also earned Second Team All-ASUN and ASUN Championship All-Tournament Team honors.
On the men’s side, baseball’s Garrett Martin was named Newcomer of the Year and Athlete of the Year after batting an impressive .340 with 45 RBIs and 15 home runs in his first 41 games as an APSU Gov. With 15 games plus the postseason left for Martin, he is just 10 home runs away from matching the Austin Peay State University single-season record.
For the second-straight year, Kenisha Phillips was named the Female Athlete of the Year. A new conference did nothing to break the stride of Phillips, who won two individual events and a relay while setting two meet records at her first ASUN Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Phillips’ success this season added to her already sparkling resume to help her earn the 2023 Legends Award. Phillips has won 13 conference titles and holds a plethora of Austin Peay, Ohio Valley Conference, and ASUN Conference records while also being named the 2020 OVC Freshman of the Year, 2020 OVC Indoor Athlete of the Championships, 2022 OVC Outdoor Female Track Athlete of the Year, 2022 OVC Indoor Female Track Athlete of the Year, and the 2022 OVC Indoor Female Track Athlete of the Championships.
Phillips’ male counterpart fot the Legends Award was men’s basketball’s Carlos Paez, who wrapped up his career as a Governor with the 428 assists – the fourth most in APSU history. Paez played in 119 games and made 95 starts over four seasons at Austin Peay while averaging 7.2 points and 3.6 assists per game. Maybe most impressive was Paez’s 2.15 assist-to-turnover ratio, with the first Venezuelan-born player in program history only giving the ball away 199 times while running the point for 3,156 minutes.
Now for the Rookie of the Year award, first on the women’s side, track and field’s Amani Sharif received the honor after being named the ASUN Conference Most Outstanding Freshman during the indoor season. Shariff won five events during the indoor season, including the gold medal in the long jump at the 2023 ASUN Indoor Championships.
For the men, it was football’s Jevon Jackson receiving Rookie of the Year Honors. A redshirt freshman running back, Jackson rushed 95 times for 572 yards and two touchdowns last season – he ranked second on the team in rushing yards and third in rushing touchdowns. Jackson, who was twice named ASUN Freshman of the Week, led the Govs, led ASUN freshman, and ranked fifth overall in the conference with an average of 6.0 yards per carry.
Staying with the Governors football team, Jackson’s teammate Kory Chapman was named the Men’s Breakout Player of the Year. Chapman racked up 67 tackles, 7.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, and 2 interceptions during the 2022 season, despite not making a start until Week Five after Kam Ruffin suffered a season-ending injury. After taking over for Ruffin against EKU, Chapman posted a career-best 13 tackles and 2.0 tackles for loss, he averaged 8.3 tackles and 1.0 tackle for loss in the final seven games of the season.
On the women’s side, softball’s Skylar Sheridan earned Breakout Player of the Year honors. Sheridan played in just four games – with zero starts – as a freshman, this year, she has played in 38 games – with 30 starts – and is batting .250 with 18 RBIs, two homers, and eight doubles.
The Moment of the Year went to the men’s tennis team for their first ASUN Conference win against Lipscomb on March 25th. The four-hour, 22-minute match was the longest in program history and snapped an eight-match losing streak to the in-state rival Bisons, who had shut the APSU Govs out in five-straight matches dating back to 2018. Thiago Nogueira sealed the match win for the Govs by coming back from down 4-1 in his third set and defeating eight match points to claim the victory.
For Game of the Year, it was the Austin Peay State University football team’s Homecoming comeback win against No. 16 Eastern Kentucky. Trailing 20-3 with 9:47 left in the third quarter, the Govs scored on their next four possessions with three Mike DiLiello touchdown runs before DiLiello threw a 24-yard touchdown to Drae McCray with 5:39 left for the game’s final score. The 17-point comeback was the team’s largest deficit overcome since erasing a 17-point EKU lead during the 2017 season. The APSU Governors also held the Colonels scoreless in the second half of the game to earn their first-ever ASUN Conference win.
Austin Peay State University also awarded the Total Gov Concept Award for the first time to honor a male and female student-athlete that embodied the ideology of the ‘Total Gov Concept’ and seek excellence in all aspects of their student-athlete experience and their teammates. Sam Howard (football) and Kelsey Mead (volleyball/beach volleyball) were the inaugural winners of the Total Gov Concept Award.
A complete list of nominees can be found below with all award winners marked in bold.
Male Legend Award: Carlos Paez (Men’s Basketball)
Female Legend Award: Kenisha Phillips (Track & Field)
Male Athlete of the Year: Mike DiLiello (Football), Jakob Falk Schollert (Men’s Golf), Garrett Martin (Baseball)
Female Athlete of the Year: Jordan Benefiel (Softball), Kenisha Phillips (Track & Field), Erica Scutt (Women’s Golf)
Male Rookie of the Year: Jevon Jackson (Football), Chandler Kirton (Football), Kam Thomas (Football)
Female Rookie of the Year: Sophia Baranov (Women’s Tennis), Anala Nelson (Women’s Basketball), Amani Sharif (Track & Field)
Male Newcomer of the Year: Mike DiLiello (Football), Jakob Falk Schollert (Men’s Golf), Garrett Martin (Baseball)
Female Newcomer of the Year: Gabi Apiag (Softball), Shamare Hale (Women’s Basketball), Chloee McDaniel (Beach Volleyball)
Male Breakout Player of the Year: Nathan Barksdale (Baseball), Reece Britt (Men’s Golf), Kory Chapman (Football)
Female Breakout Player of the Year: Chloe Dion (Soccer), Kady Foshaug (Women’s Golf), Skylar Sheridan (Softball), Elizabeth Wheat (Volleyball/Beach Volleyball)
Coach of the Year: Valerie Brown (Cross Country/Track & Field), Roland Fanning (Baseball), Scotty Walden (Football), Brittany Young (Women’s Basketball)
Team of the Year: Women’s Basketball, Women’s Golf, Women’s Tennis
Game of the Year: Softball’s Jordan Benefiel throws no-hitter against Providence, Women’s basketball beats Eastern Kentucky for first ASUN Tournament win in the Dunn Center, Football’s Homecoming comeback win against No. 16 Eastern Kentucky
Moment of the Year: Madduz Trujillo’s record-tying 55-yard field goal vs. Jacksonville State, Men’s Tennis beats Lipscomb for first ASUN win in longest match in program history, Kenisha Phillips wins three events, sets two records at Indoor ASUN Track & Field Championships
Courtney Turner Memorial Scholarship: Grace Henderson (Dance)
Male Total Gov Concept Award: Sam Howard (Football)
Female Total Gov Concept Award: Kelsey Mead (Volleyball/Beach Volleyball)
Male Scholar Athlete of the Year: Matthew Rigney (Football)
Female Scholar Athlete of the Year: Jana Leder (Women’s Tennis)
Academic Team Awards: Jacob Weaver (Baseball), Tegan Seyring (Beach Volleyball), Savannah Ashley (Cheerleading), Grace Henderson (Dance), Maddux Trujillo (Football), Carlos Paez (Men’s Basketball), Jack Fitzgerald (Men’s Cross Country), Payne Elkins (Men’s Golf), Giovanni Becchis (Men’s Tennis), Emma Dalton/Lindsey McMahon/Hannah Wilson (Soccer), Macee Roberts (Softball), Maggie Keenan (Volleyball), Kaiden Glenn (Women’s Basketball), Sydney Hartoin (Women’s Cross Country), Erica Scutt (Women’s Golf), Jana Leder (Women’s Tennis), and Karlijn Schouten (Women’s Track & Field)
Donor of the Year: Antonio Murgas
Support Staff of the Year: Niesha Campbell
Graduate Assistant of the Year: Erin White
