Lincoln Memorial’s Hall, Sewanee’s Munn earn TSWA weekly honors

April 18, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lincoln Memorial’s Chris Hall and University of the South’s Matt Munn were named the baseball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from April 10-16.

Munn tossed the final seven innings in a 10-inning, 2-1 victory against Oglethorpe University, allowing one run with a career-best 14 strikeouts for the Tigers. The Bellaire, Texas, native gave up just five hits with no walks and one hit batter in the relief outing, holding the Petrels scoreless over his last five innings.

He retired the side in order in the eighth and 10th innings and faced the minimum in the order, erasing a leadoff single with a doubleplay. The 14 strikeouts are the second most in a single game at Sewanee since at least 2008.

Munn improved to 5-3 this season in 10 appearances with seven starts covering 46.1 innings with 16 walks and 51 strikeouts.

Hall batted .615 (8-for-13) with one double, one homer, two RBIs and seven runs scored in three games for the Railsplitters. The Sandy Springs, Ga., native posted three hits with a double and one run scored in a midweek game at Lenoir-Rhyne.

The junior outfielder collected three more hits and scored three times in the first outing of a doubleheader at UVA-Wise. He added two more hits with a two-run homer and three runs scored in the second game of the twinbill against the Cavs.

Hall is batting .321 with two doubles, one triple, one homer, five RBIs and 11 runs scored in 16 games (53 at-bats) this season.

2022-23 TSWA BASEBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
February 21 – Jack Roode, University of the South (Player); Jaden Hamm, Middle Tennessee (Pitcher)
February 28 – Jared Dickey, Tennessee (Player); Chase Burns, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 7 – Blake Burke, Tennessee (Player); Chase Dollander, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 14 – Cole Turney, Cumberland University (Player); Jaden Hamm, Middle Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 21 – Gabe Jennings, Middle Tennessee (Player); Hunter Owen, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
March 28 – Parker Noland, Vanderbilt (Player); Noah Thompson, Lipscomb (Pitcher)
April 4 – Eston Snider, Middle Tennessee (Player); Devin Futrell, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
April 12 – Austin Kelly, Lipscomb (Player); Logan Van Treeck, Lipscomb (Pitcher)

TSWA announces college basketball player, coach of the year awards

April 17, 2023 Forrest Freeman

A first-year coach who turned around a program that won five games the season before with essentially little change to the roster heads up the Tennessee Sports Writers Association’s college basketball awards for the 2022-23 season.

Karen Booker’s revival of Trevecca Nazarene earned her the Pat Summitt TSWA Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year award announced Monday. She’s joined by junior guard Destinee Wells, who led Belmont’s transition to the Missouri Valley Conference as the Women’s Basketball Player of the Year.

Jerry Stackhouse, the Southeastern Conference’s Co-Coach of the Year, is the TSWA Men’s Basketball Coach of the Year after leading Vanderbilt to its most league wins since the 2015-16 season. Kendric Davis of Memphis is the men’s basketball player of the year after leading the Tigers to a second straight NCAA Tournament berth.

Booker, a Franklin native who was All-SEC as a player at Vanderbilt, was hired as Trevecca Nazarene’s sixth women’s coach last summer. She added only two freshmen and a transfer, who was a reserve, yet led the team to a 21-win season and the program’s first appearance in the NCAA Division II Championships.

It was the Trojans’ most wins in their 11-year tenure at the NCAA level. They also went undefeated at home for the first time in program history, finishing 14-0. Trevecca Nazarene made the Great Midwest Tournament as the No. 3 seed and advanced to the finals after being picked to finish 12th out of 13 teams in the preseason coaches’ poll. Booker led them to the No. 5 seed in the Midwest Regional.

Wells, who has since announced her transfer to Tennessee, was the only player in the nation to average more than 19 points and 4.5 assists while also shooting over 45 percent beyond the arc. She was named to the All-Missouri Valley Conference First Team, averaging 19.5 points, 4.9 assists, three rebounds and a steal per game.

She averaged 32.4 points over her final five games, including three MVC Tournament games and a WNIT road contest. Wells tied her career-best, scoring 35 points in the WNIT loss at Ball State. She set the single-season scoring record for Belmont’s NCAA era and leaves the program ranked sixth all-time with 1,648 career points.

Stackhouse also won the Ben Jobe National Minority Coach of the Year after leading the Commodores to 22 wins, their fifth-most victories in a single season over the past three decades. The 11 SEC wins marked just the third time with that many league victories or more in the same span.

Vanderbilt won 14 games at Memorial Gym, also the Commodores’ most since the 2015-16 season. Stackhouse led the Commodores to the NIT quarterfinals for a second straight season.

Davis made an immediate impact in his lone season at Memphis, leading the American Athletic Conference in scoring with 21.9 points a game, which ranked eighth nationally. He was the only Division I player to rank in the Top 20 for both points scored per game and assists with 5.4 per game.

He shot 41.4 percent from the floor, 34.6 percent from 3-point range and 85.4 percent at the free throw line. He ranked third nationally in free throws made and posted a career-high 42 points on Jan. 11, the fifth-most points in program history and one off the AAC record.

Davis became the first player to lead the AAC in scoring three times and in three straight seasons. He was a unanimous All-AAC First Team pick and AP All-America Honorable Mention after being a six-time AAC player of the week.

He set the AAC records for career points scored, total assists and free throws made. His 744 points scored this season topped coach Penny Hardaway for second-most all-time in Memphis history, 18 shy of Dajuan Wagner’s mark of 762.

Austin Peay’s Hodum, Benefiel garner TSWA weekly accolades

April 12, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Austin Peay’s Megan Hodum and Jordan Benefiel garnered softball Player and Pitcher of the Week accolades, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from April 3-9.

Hodum batted .700 (7-for-10) with three doubles, three runs scored and three RBIs in a three-game series against Bellarmine. The Stantonville, Tenn., native collected a pair of doubles and scored twice in the first game versus the Knights and was 3-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, posting a two-run double in the fifth inning in a 2-0 victory.

She finished the series with two more hits, one run and one RBI, an RBI single in the second inning. For the season Hodum is hitting .259 with eight doubles, 11 RBIs and 18 runs scored in 32 contests.

Benefiel tossed a pair of complete-game shutouts for the Govs against Bellarmine, allowing just four hits with one walk and 13 strikeouts. The Pendleton, Ind., native gave up three hits and one walk while striking out six in the first outing of the three-game series, a 2-0 win, retiring the side in order in the second, third and seventh innings. She worked around a single and a hit batter in the fifth as well, stranding a pair of runners.

The junior righthander tossed a one-hit shutout with seven strikeouts in the final game against the Knights, setting down the side in order in five of the seven frames. She hit a batter in the third and gave up a single in the sixth, improving to 7-0 with a 0.66 ERA in ASUN play. For the season Benefiel upped her record to 15-6 with a 1.90 ERA in 136.1 innings, allowing 101 hits with 157 strikeouts and a .200 opponent batting average.

2022-23 TSWA SOFTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
February 21 – Macey Neal, Union University (Player)
February 28 – Chloe Kleischmidt, Tusculum University (Player); Rylee Gattis, Carson-Newman (Pitcher)
March 7 – Acelynn Sellers, Chattanooga (Player); Alyssa Lavdis, Chattanooga (Pitcher)
March 14 – Macauley Bailey, Carson-Newman (Player); Ashlan Sensing, Trevecca Nazarene (Pitcher)
March 21 – Macauley Bailey, Carson-Newman (Player); Caitlyn Manus, Tennessee State (Pitcher)
March 28 – Kendall Andrews, Trevecca Nazarene (Player); Savana Luper, King University (Pitcher)
April 4 – McKenzie Henry, Lincoln Memorial (Player); Ashlan Sensing, Trevecca Nazarene (Pitcher)

Lipscomb’s Kelly, Van Treeck earn TSWA weekly honors

April 12, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lipscomb’s Austin Kelly and Logan Van Treeck were named the baseball Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from April 3-9.

Kelly batted .500 (9-for-18) with four home runs, 12 RBIs and nine runs scored in four wins for the Bisons. The Leland, Miss., native was 4-for-5 with four RBIs and four runs scored, including a pair of homers, in a 12-7 victory against 18th-ranked Louisville.

He belted a solo homer and added a sacrifice fly while scoring twice in the second of a three-game series at North Alabama and finished the weekend with three hits, six RBIs and three runs scored in the series finale, posting a two-run double, an RBI single and a three-run homer. Kelly is hitting .313 with 13 home runs, 34 RBIs and 24 runs scored in 28 games this season.

Van Treeck tossed seven innings in the series opener at North Alabama, allowing just three hits one unearned run while striking out 12 in a 7-2 victory. The Lincoln, Neb., native retired the side in order in the first, second and fifth innings and worked around one baserunner in the third, fourth and sixth innings.

The junior lefthander allowed a leadoff double and an error setup UNA to plate its only run against Van Treeck in the seventh inning. He improved to 3-3 this season with a 3.00 ERA in nine appearances (two starts) covering 36.0 innings, giving up 28 hits with just three walks and 47 strikeouts. Opponents are batting .209 against him.

Lincoln Memorial’s Henry, Trevecca’s Sensing garner TSWA weekly accolades

April 4, 2023 Forrest Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lincoln Memorial’s McKenzie Henry and Trevecca University’s Ashlan Sensing garnered softball Player and Pitcher of the Week accolades, respectively, by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association for their efforts in contests from March 27-April 2.

Henry batted .462 (6-for-13) with two home runs, five RBIs and three runs scored in four games for the Railsplitters. The Louisville, Tenn., native was 0-for-1 with a walk in the first of two games against Carson-Newman but posted three hits, three RBIs and two runs scored in the second outing versus the Eagles, including a two-run homer in the first inning and an RBI single in extra innings.

She belted a solo homer in the sixth inning in the first of two games at Coker University and collected two hits with an RBI single in the second meeting versus the Cobras. Henry is hitting .415 with 10 doubles, six home runs, 37 RBIs and 26 runs scored in 42 games this season.

Sensing posted a 2-0 mark with a 0.50 ERA in two complete games with one shutout, allowing just nine hits with 12 strikeouts for the Trojans. The Dickson, Tenn., native gave up four hits, no walks and struck out eight in a 7-1 victory against Northwood University, retiring the side in order in the first, second and fifth innings.

She followed that with a five-hit shutout against Ashland University, striking out four and giving up no walks, setting down the side in order in three innings and allowing just one baserunner past first. Sensing upped her record this year to 10-4 with a 1.11 ERA in 18 appearances over 95.0 innings. The righthander has given up 67 hits with eight walks and 98 strikeouts, with opponents batting .194 against her.