A&M Swim and Dive
The A&M diving team finished the season as one of the best in the country and was awarded for its efforts. Men’s diving coach Jay Leraw earned another SEC Men’s Diving Coach of the Year, winning it for the third time in the past four seasons.
Four men’s divers brought home All-American honors at the NCAA Championships. For their efforts, divers junior Victor Povzner was named to 1st Team All-SEC in the 1-meter and 3-meter, sophomore Rhett Hensley earned a spot to 2nd Team All-SEC in the 1-meter and junior Takuto Endo made his way into 2nd Team All-SEC in the 3-meter.
Joslyn Oakley earned Freshman Diver of the Year as well as being named to SEC All-Freshman Team following a stellar season. She finished in the top-five at the SEC Championships in the 1-meter and found herself with many top-five and top-three finishes throughout the season.
Freshman swimmer Giulia Goerigk garnered SEC All-Freshman Team honors as well as being named to All-SEC Second Team, following an impressive season that saw her grab bronze in the 400-yard individual medley at the SEC Championships as well as having one of the fastest times in the country in the event.
Junior swimmer Chloe Stepanek added another All-SEC award to her resume, being named to the All-SEC Second Team following a second-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle at the SEC Championships. She also grabbed All-American honors at the NCAA Championships, with a seventh-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle as well as Honorable All-American honors in the 100-yard freestyle and the 400-yard medley relay. She has been named to the All-SEC Second Team for three consecutive years.
Freshman swimmers Connor Foote and Baylor Nelson made an immediate impact in their freshman season as two of the fastest freshmen in the country. Nelson won the 200-yard individual medley and 400-yard individual medley in the SEC Championships, earning co-recipient of the SEC Commissioner’s trophy. Foote and Nelson garnered All-American and Honorable Mention All-American honors at their first NCAA Championships.
Nelson joined Povzner on being named to All-SEC First Team while senior swimmers Kaloyan Bratanov and Anze Fers Erzen joined Endo and Hensley earned spots on All-SEC Second Team.
Koko Wooley and Keely Williams
After dominant performances in a series sweep against Mississippi State, sophomore INF Koko Wooley and freshman OF Keely Williams won SEC Player of the Week and SEC Freshman of the Week, respectively On Tuesday, April 11.
Wooley’s best performance came in the series finale, as the La Porte-native hit 3-4 with a double, a triple and two RBIs en route to a 5-1 victory to help give the Aggies the series sweep.
On the weekend, Wooley hit .455 with a double, a triple and three RBIs, with two stolen bases as well.
Williams went 3-8 in the series, hitting .375 and drew a walk in each game. The Cibolo-native also scored three runs on the weekend.
This is the first SEC Player of the Week award for the Aggies since junior INF Trinity Cannon won it on Feb. 13. This is also the first time two A&M players have won SEC honors on the same week since Samantha Show and Payton McBride won SEC Pitcher and Freshman of the Week in 2017.
Sam Bennett
After a historic performance in the 87th Masters on Thursday, April 6, to Sunday, April 9, fifth-year Sam Bennett earned SEC Golfer of the Week honors.
The Madisonville-native earned a spot at the Masters after winning the 122nd U.S. Amateur, and had one of the best performances from an amateur in recent memory.
Bennett finished 8-under-par after two rounds, the second lowest an amateur has scored in Masters history. It is also the best performance after two rounds since 1956.
After finishing the tournament 2-under-par, Bennett earned the Silver Cup for Low Amateur, finishing in 16th place which is the highest finish from an amateur since 2005.
Mary Stoiana
Stoiana earned SEC Women’s Tennis Player of the Week for the third-straight week in the row, her sixth win of the season on Wednesday, April 12. Stoiana and freshman Mia Kupres handled Ole Miss in a doubles match, 6-1, to secure a victory on Court 2.
Stoiana then secured a singles victory which clinched A&M’s match victory over Ole Miss.
Stoiana and Kupres picked up another 6-1 doubles win in the second match of the week against Mississippi State before securing the second match, once again with a singles victory.
