Crimson Choice Awards Celebrate Alabama Athletics Success
4/25/2023 7:55:00 PM | General
The Alabama Student-Athlete Advisory Committee’s annual Crimson Choice Awards show was held in person for the first time since 2019 Tuesday night at the Bryant Conference Center
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama Athletics Department's annual Crimson Choice Awards, presented by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), was held in person for the first time since 2019 Tuesday night at the Bryant Conference Center. Roger Hoover and Kenzie Hughes served as the celebration's hosts while Director of Athletics Greg Byrne opened the proceeding with some remarks.
SAAC President Cam Auerbach (swimming and diving) along with SAAC Executive Committee member Derek Maas (swimming and diving) also welcomed guests to Sellers Auditorium for the annual celebration and closed the night with comments on Alabama's overall and ongoing success this season.
The awards culminated with the announcement of the Paul W. Bryant Award winners Academic All-American Kat Rogers from soccer for the women along with two-time winner of the Nagurski Trophy, as well as the Bednarik Award, Rotary Lombardi and Lott IMPACT Trophy winner and All-American Will Anderson Jr. for the men.
The Paul W. Bryant Student-Athlete Award, created by the Tuscaloosa County Chapter of The University of Alabama Alumni Association in 1985, is presented annually to UA's top male and female student-athlete. This year, winners were presented by Tuscaloosa Alumni Association chapter president Barkley Garrett.
The finalists for this year's Bryant Award were, for the men - Andrew Pinckney, baseball; Charles Bediako, basketball; Victor Kiprop, cross country; Anderson Jr., football; Thomas Ponder, golf; Derek Maas, swimming and diving; Joao Ferreira, tennis; Bobby Colantonio Jr., track and field and for the women - Hannah Barber, basketball; Flomena Asekol, cross country; Emilie Øverås, golf; Luisa Blanco, gymnastics; Gianna Rucki, rowing; Kat Rogers, soccer; Ally Shipman, softball; Kensey McMahon, swimming and diving; Sydney Orefice, tennis; Mercy Chelangat, track and field; Katie Shook, volleyball.
For the second year in a row, women's golf (3.97) and men's tennis (3.67) were honored as the teams with the highest grade point averages.
The Athletics Department's outreach efforts were also recognized during the event with the Commitment to Service award. Tennis and volleyball were the men's and women's squads, respectively, with the most community outreach hours.
The Unsung Hero Award lauded Alabama student-athletes for making a substantive yet often under-recognized contribution to their team's success in ways that can be difficult to measure. The 2023 men's class was comprised of the late Davis Heller (baseball) along with Nick Pringle (basketball), Sam Willoughby (football), Thomas Ponder (golf), Brady Barton (cross country), Will Watson (swimming and diving), Joao Ferreira (tennis) and Patrick Daves (track and field). The women's class included Ryan Cobbins (basketball), Elka Machan (cross country), Isabella van der Biest (golf), Corinne Bunagan (gymnastics), Abby Pesansky (rowing), Macy Clem (soccer), M'Kay Gidley (softball), Maddie Mechling (swimming and diving), Ansley Cheshire (tennis), Hailey Poole (track and field) and Micah Gryniewicz (volleyball).
Other Crimson Choice Awards announced Monday night included:
- Team of the Year – Men's Basketball & Soccer
- Coach of the Year – Wes Hart (soccer) & Nate Oats (m. basketball)
- A-Club Athlete of the Year – Kensey McMahon (w. swimming & diving) & Bryce Young (football)
- Rookie of the Year – Brandon Miller (m. basketball), Hilda Olemomoi (w. track and field/cross country) & Gianna Paul (soccer)
- Comeback Athlete of the Year – Riley Mattingly Parker (soccer)
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