Twelve Student-Athletes Honored for Excellence in Competition
SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? The Southern Conference announced its March athletes of the month today, highlighting excellence among student-athletes during the month. The athletes of the month are nominated by each member institution and selected by the conference office.
WOMEN’S TENNIS
Anna Millian, Elon, Sr.
Millian was a perfect 7-0 at number one singles and 7-0 at number one doubles while helping Elon to a 6-1 mark in March. She is on a nine-match winning streak at the top singles position and won five of her seven matches in straight sets. Millian did not give up a game in a 6-0, 6-0 defeat of Western Carolina’s Amanda Massey, and she handed Holly Dowse of CofC her first SoCon loss of the season. In doubles, Millian and teammate Elisa Simonetti have won 12 consecutive matches. The duo won two conference bouts by 8-1 scores and did not give up more than five games in any of their seven wins in March.
Other Nominees: Emma Hayman (College of Charleston), Stephanie Synn (Davidson), Monica Arguello (Furman), Melanie Rolle (Georgia Southern), Andrie Meiring (Samford) and Stephanie Cox (Wofford).
MEN’S TENNIS
Orcun Seyrek, UNC Greensboro, So.
Seyrek went 8-0 in singles play, dropping just one set the entire month, and 6-2 in doubles play with one of the losses coming on a tie-breaker. He was a perfect 5-0 in Southern Conference singles action, surrendering a total of just 18 games in five, two-set matches. In non-conference action, the reigning league Player and Freshman of the Year defeated No. 45 Clemson’s top singles player, Rob Bizjak, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5.
Other Nominees: Mickael Trintignac (College of Charleston), Calum Gee (Davidson), Carl Lundberg (Furman), Juan Manuel Melian Puigventos (Georgia Southern) and Paul Bartholomy (Wofford).
BASEBALL PLAYER
David Schulze, Samford, Sr., OF
Schulze batted .424 (25-of-59) with three doubles, five home runs and 21 RBIs in 15 games during the Month of March. The senior had a slugging percentage of .729 for the month and a .500 on-base percentage while leading the Bulldogs to a 5-1 mark in Southern Conference play. His best game of the month came in Samford’s win at College of Charleston on March 14, when Schulze went 6-for-6 with a double, two home runs and seven RBIs. In the first game of the Charleston series on March 12, Schulze was 5-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs.
Other Nominees: Jerod Faggart (Appalachian State), Matt Leeds (College of Charleston), Nick Orvin (The Citadel), Danny Weiss (Davidson), Ryan Adams (Elon), Kyle Blackburn (Georgia Southern), Harry Slade (UNC Greensboro), Ollie Goulder (Western Carolina) and Mac Doyle (Wofford).
BASEBALL PITCHER
Jake Brown, Georgia Southern, Sr., LHP
Brown went a perfect 4-0 overall and 3-0 in league play in six appearances during the month of March. Brown threw two complete games, striking out seven while allowing just one run against Marshall. Against UNC Greensboro, Brown again struck out seven while surrendering three earned runs. In 36.2 innings pitched, Brown game up 13 runs (nine earned), while walking only seven, and accumulating a 2.21 ERA. He held his opponents to a.194 batting average while giving up only one home run.
Other Nominees: Chris Patterson (Appalachian State), Kevin Decker (College of Charleston), Asher Wojciechowski (The Citadel), Ryan Overcash (Davidson), Jared Kernodle (Elon), Andrew Jones (Samford), Jason Sullivan (Western Carolina) and J.D. Osborne (Wofford).
SOFTBALL PLAYER
Emerald Graham, Elon, Jr., OF
Graham hit .375 (21-for-56) on the month with 3 home runs, 16 RBIs and 21 runs scored. The junior did not register a strikeout in 16 of the 20 games that were played, and she slugged .607 with a triple and two doubles in addition to her three round-trippers. In the field, Graham committed just one error in 20 starts at centerfield while leading Elon to a 14-6 overall mark and 7-2 SoCon record.
Other Nominees: Katie Boyd (Appalachian State), Amber Shifflett (College of Charleston), Lyndsey Stiles (Chattanooga), Stephanie Field (Furman), Megen Smith (Georgia Southern), Alex Emeterio (UNC Greensboro), Katie England (Samford).
SOFTBALL PITCHER
Brianna Streetmon, Georgia Southern, Jr., LHP
Streetmon fashioned a 9-3 record to go along with one save and a 0.89 ERA during the month of March. The junior surrendered just 11 earned runs in 86.2 innings in the circle, striking out 80 batters while walking just 18. At one point in the month, Streetmon pitched 31 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run, and she also won eight straight decisions at one point. She surrendered only one home run on the month while guiding GSU to a 12-7 record and a 6-2 Southern Conference mark.
Other Nominees: Caitlin Wainright (Appalachian State), Terri Mesko (College of Charleston), Kandice Irwin (Chattanooga), Lauren Taylor (Elon), Kayla Suskauer (Furman), Cory Mattson (UNC Greensboro) and Stephanie Royall (Samford).
MEN’S GOLF
Steven Fox, Chattanooga, Fr.
Fox captured his first collegiate championship by tying for medalist honors at the Furman Intercollegiate. In that event, Fox fired a six-under par 210. For the month, the freshman averaged a team-best 71.2 strokes per round while shooting at par or better in five of nine rounds. At the Cleveland Golf Palmetto Intercollegiate, Fox tied for fifth place overall in addition to a 32nd place finish at the Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate
Other Nominees: Austin Reeves (Furman), Florian Sander (Georgia Southern), Casey O’Toole (Samford), Tanner Briele (Western Carolina) and Mark Joye (Wofford).
WOMEN’S GOLF
Emma de Groot, Chattanooga, Jr.
A two-time golfer of the week selection during the month, de Groot recorded four top 20 and two top five finishes in four March events. The junior tied for fourth at the Kinderlou Forest Challenge and followed that with a second place finish at the JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational, carding a season-best one-over par 217. After starting the month ranking No. 76 nationally according to Golfstat, de Groot climbed to the 46th spot by the month’s end.
Other Nominees: Diana Davis (Elon), Stefanie Kenoyer (Furman), Courtney Taylor (UNC Greensboro), Katelyn Stanier (Samford), Josefine Sundh (Western Carolina) and Alex Rankin (Wofford).
MEN’S OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD
TRACK
Phil Mitchell, Appalachian State, Sr.
Mitchell finished ninth at the Raleigh Relays (March 26-27) in the 10,000m with a time of 30:36. That time set a new personal record and ranks seventh all-time at ASU and leads the SoCon. Mitchell placed second at the Wake Forest Invitational (March 19-20) in the 5k with a time of 14:48.12. At that time he led the conference rankings by 10 seconds.
Other Nominees: Cameron Bean (Samford), Cavan Corcoran (Samford), Lee Gilmer (Furman), Stephen Hammond (Western Carolina), Brendan Kight (The Citadel) and Brunson Miller (The Citadel).
FIELD
Matt Evans, Western Carolina, Sr.
Evans had two outstanding performances at the Shamrock Invitational hosted by Coastal Carolina (March 18-20). Evans posted a jump of 6' 10 3/4" in the high jump and a toss of 208' 4" in the javelin. Both of these marks lead the SoCon.
Other Nominees: Christopher Castagno (The Citadel), Tim Daly (Appalachian State), Thomas Oliver (Samford), Michael Seaman (Samford), Malcolm Styers (Appalachian State) and Patrick Wells (Samford).
WOMEN’S OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD
TRACK
Jelain McArthur, College of Charleston, Fr.
McArthur won the 100m hurdles at the Palmetto Classic (March 12) with a time of 14.75 while also finishing second in the 200 meters with a time of 25.52. The freshman also finished second in the triple jump with a leap of 38-3.5.
McArthur broke the College of Charleston school record, placing second in the 100m hurdles at the Shamrock Invitational (March 18-20) with a time of 14.20. She also ran 25.51 in the 200m and finished second in the long jump with a school-record performance of 18-4.75.
McArthur jumped 39-5 at the Raleigh Relays (March 26-27), breaking the school record and setting a high mark for the SoCon this season.
Other Nominees: Hillary Neal (Samford).
FIELD
Urysla Cotton, Elon, Sr.
A senior who recently completed her eligibility with the Elon’s women’s basketball team, Cotton won the shot put at the Coastal Carolina Invitational (March 12-13) with a toss of 44-9.75, which currently leads the SoCon rankings.
Other Nominees: Jelain McArthur (College of Charleston) and Danielle Thorpe (Appalachian State).
Southern Conference March Athletes of the Month
Women’s Tennis Anna Millian, Elon
Men’s Tennis Orcun Seyrek, UNC Greensboro
Baseball (Player) David Schulze, Samford
Baseball (Pitcher) Jake Brown, Georgia Southern
Softball (Player) Emerald Graham, Elon
Softball (Pitcher) Brianna Streetmon, Georgia Southern
Men’s Golf Steven Fox, Chattanooga
Women’s Golf Emma de Groot, Chattanooga
Men’s Outdoor Track Phil Mitchell, Appalachian State
Men’s Outdoor Field Matt Evans, Western Carolina
Women’s Outdoor Track Jelain McArthur, College of Charleston
Women’s Outdoor Field Urysla Cotton, Elon