The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga celebrated the accomplishments of its student-athletes over the last year with the 2015 Coca-Cola Scrappy Awards. The event was held at the historic Tivoli Theater in downtown Chattanooga on Monday, April 13.
Awards were handed out for Rookie of the Year, Male and Female Student-Athlete of the Year and Team of the Year, just to name a few.
One big question that always surrounds The Scrappys is, "What is it?" If you made it out on Monday, you know that it is a fun-filled evening of awards and highlights from the last year of Mocs Athletics.
If you could not make it, check out the full video of the show here or on the link at the top of the page. One of the most popular pieces was the “From One Athlete to Another” season recap. Another highlight was the annual Blooper Reel.
A complete list of award winners is available below, while photos from the event and the Photo Booth are linked at the top of the page. Go ahead and mark your calendars for next year's show back at the Tivoli - Thursday, April 14, 2015.
Rookie of the Year – Keiana Gilbert – Women's Basketball
Keiana Gilbert got everyone's attention early in the season when she scored 27 points and five boards in the Mocs' upset win over Tennessee. She was named ESPN's National Player of the Week and went on to earn a spot on the Southern Conference All-Freshman team.
Other nominees included: McKenzie Gregg (Soccer), Teghan Henderson (Outdoor Track & Field), Ewan Scott (Men's Golf), Softball (Jesslyn Stockard), Lucas Webb (Football).
Play of the Year – Casey Jones – Men's Basketball
Casey Jones was the hero on January 10th in the Mocs' historic rivalry with ETSU. With time winding down, and everyone else covered, Jones rose up from 25 feet in front of the basket and buried a three-point dagger into the heart of the Buccaneers for a 74-71 overtime win.
Other nominees included: Ronrico White's three-pointer to beat UNCG, Tommy Hudson's 66-yard punt return against Samford, Nicole Osterman's game-saving catch in the 2014 SoCon Championship game.
Behind the Scenes Award – Aaron Davis – Student-Support Services
Aaron Davis is in his first year in the office of student support services. He coordinates all tutoring, mentoring and textbooks for the student-athletes at UTC. It was a tight race, but Aaron, you are the Mocs choice for the behind the scenes award.
Other nominees included: Associate Director of Athletic Performance Greg Goldin, Public Address announcer for football & softball Ron Hall, MocsVision assistant Andy Page, marketing assistant Jessica Roseberry.
Individual Performance of the Year – Jasmine Joyner – Women's Basketball
Jasmine Joyner had one of the best games in school history with 26 points and 20 rebounds in a 68-55 win over Furman in the semifinals of the Southern Conference Tournament. She was 10-of-15 from the field and added three blocks in her first career 20-20 game. She went on to win SoCon tournament MVP honors, on her way to guiding the Mocs to the championship.
Other nominees included: Emily McLennan's four-shot win at the 2014 SoCon Championships, Jacob Huesman's 458 yards of total offense against Mercer, Chris Robb birdieing five of the last six holes to earn All-American honors at the 2014 NCAA Championships, Katie Henderson's MVP performance in the 2014 SoCon Softball Tournament.
Professor of the Year – Dr. Mohammad “Mo” Ahmadi
Dr. Mohammad Ahmadi is a Guerry Professor of Management in the UTC College of Business. A 36-year veteran of the UTC faculty, Dr. Ahmadi has influenced student-athletes for over three decades. He received the SGA Outstanding Professor Award on multiple occasions, as well as the College of Business Outstanding Professor Award.
Victory of the Year – Women's Basketball's win over No. 4 Tennessee
History repeated itself on November 26 when the Mocs defeated the Tennessee Volunteers for the second time in three seasons. Fans nervously watched a 16-point halftime lead fade away, but strong play down the stretch led Chattanooga to another historic win over the Lady Vols.
Other nominees included: Women's Golf with its fifth-straight SoCon championship, Women's Basketball's win over no. 7 Stanford, Men's Tennis upset win over Davidson in the SoCon Tournament, Women's Indoor Track & Field winning the SoCon Distance Medley Relay title in record-setting fashion, Wrestling's win over Oklahoma.
McDonald's Fan of the Year – Nubby and Jill Napolitano
Nubby and Jill Napolitano are long-time Mocs fans and fixtures at nearly every UTC event. Be it football, basketball, or golf, they are always there to help cheer on UTC to victory. The voting for the McDonald's Fan of the Year was the tightest of any category at this year's Scrappys.
Other nominees included: Doug Dyer, Dean and Mary Jane Heavener, Bob Mulkey, Daniel Wagner.
Columbia Recycling Comeback of the Year – Wrestling winning the last three matches to defeat Oklahoma
Trailing 16-9 with three matches left, the Mocs battled back for a historic 19-16 victory against the Sooners. Scottie Boykin won in overtime and Jared Johnson capped it off with a decision against no. 11 Ross Larson for one of the biggest wins in the history of the wrestling program.
Other nominees included: Women's Golf over-taking Furman at the 2014 SoCon Championship, Men's basketball's comeback win at UNC Greensboro.
Coach of the year – Jim Foster – Women's Basketball
Coach Foster was the 2015 SoCon Coach of the Year after guiding UTC to a 29-4 record and another league title. UTC is 58-8 overall and 32-0 in SoCon games in two seasons under Coach Foster.
Other nominees included: Wrestling Head Coach Heath Eslinger, 2015 Southern Conference Football Coach of the Year Russ Huesman, women's Golf Coach Colette Murray, Softball Coach Frank Reed.
Coca-Cola Male Student-Athlete of the Year – 2014 All-American Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year Davis Tull
Davis Tull wrapped up one of the most successful careers in any sport in school history. He broke the SoCon record and is fourth in NCAA history with 37.0 career sacks. He is a three-time All-American and a three-time SoCon Player of the Year.
Other nominees included: 2015 Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year Sean Boyle, 2014 All-American and Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year Jacob Huesman, 2014 All-American Chris Robb, 2015 Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year Justin Tuoyo.
Coca-Cola Female Student-Athlete of the Year – Jasmine Joyner – Women's Basketball
Jasmine Joyner wowed the crowds with her shot-blocking talents, breaking school and Southern Conference records. She ranked as high as second in the nation this year and is second all-time at UTC in just two seasons. She led the team in scoring, rebounding and blocks, while guiding the SoCon champs to the NCAA Tournament and a 29-4 overall record.
Other nominees included: 2014 SoCon Golfer of the Year Jordan Britt, 2014 SoCon Softball Tournament MVP Katie Henderson, 2014 SoCon Outdoor Track Freshman of the Year with two individual titles, Teghan Henderson, 2014 Tennis First Team All-SoCon Kayla Jones, 2015 SoCon Basketball Defensive Player of the Year Alicia Payne.
UTC College of Health, Education and Professional Studies Scholar Athlete of the Year – Rebecca Greenwall – Cross Country, Track and Field
Rebecca Greenwall is a nursing major with a 3.78 grade-point-average. She is an eight-time member of the Academic All-SoCon team and is constantly on the SoCon honor roll. She ran the 1200-meter leg of the SoCon Indoor Distance Medley Relay Championships, leading the Mocs to a school-record win in the event.
Other nominees included: Skylar Brewer – Soccer, Jordan Britt – Women's Golf, Kaylene Chadwell – Women's Tennis, Pavels Grigorjevs – Men's Tennis, Briana Guzinski – Volleyball, John Lampe – Wrestling, Patrick O'Brien - Men's Track & Field and Cross Country, Alicia Payne - Women's Basketball, Stephanie Reick – Softball, Chris Robb – Men's Golf, Eric Robertson – Men's Basketball, Davis Tull – Football.
FSG Bank Team of the Year – Women's Basketball
The Chattanooga Mocs women's basketball team had one of the most successful seasons in school history. UTC won its 19th Southern Conference regular season title and 16th SoCon Tournament trophy in 2015. The Mocs also advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 13th time, while reaching a school-record No. 17 national ranking. Chattanooga tied a school record with 29 wins for the third year in a row. Two of those victories included home upsets against no. 4 Tennessee and no. 7 Stanford.
Other nominees included: Nationally-Ranked SoCon champion football team, Five-Time defending Southern Conference champion women's golf team, 2014 SoCon Tournament champion softball team, Southern Conference regular season and tournament champion wrestling team.
