Mashburn earns TTU Impact Award
Calhoun alum takes honors after strong freshman year
Tenn.
— Junior Matthew Giles and senior Allyson Dunn were honored as the 201718 Most Valuable Players for the Tennessee Tech men’s and women’s golf teams, as Tennessee Tech head golf coach Polk Brown announced the postseason awards for the Golden Eagle squads.
On the women’s side, freshman and former Calhoun High standout Kate Mashburn was named the Impact Award winner after partipating in seven events and compiling a scoring average of 80.33. She finished in the top-25 of four tournaments, including the OVC Championships where she fired a first-round 74.
“Kate played in over half of our tournaments this year and to qualify for conference and play the way she did that first day was pretty impressive,” Brown said. “She is just an awesome young lady and very coachable. She’s always excited to play and practice and she’s such a joy to be around. I think she is going to be a leader on the team for the next few years.”
Giles earned his first Gilbert Darcy MVP honor for the men’s team while Dunn captured her third straight MVP selection as a member of the women’s team. Giles also captured team honors for Low Average and Best Putter.
Representing the men’s team as captain for the second straight year was senior A.J. Wilkerson. The fifth-year man took part in 10 of the team’s 12 events throughout the year and ended his long career with a 75.48 scoring average.
Dunn served as team co-captain for the second year in-a-row, sharing the duties with junior Hollee Sadler. Dunn, who also earned the team honors for Low Average, Best Putter and Long Hitter, ended her three-year Golden Eagle career with the lowest scoring average in program history, a mark of 76.98. The senior veteran recorded three top-10 finishes on the year, including a third-place showing at the Bobby Nichols Intercollegiate to earn All-Tournament honors. Sadler posted a 79.52 scoring average while participating in every event on the year. She nabbed a top-10 finish at the Chris Banister Golf Classic.
Freshmen Will Brooks and Bracton Womack shared the Impact Award for the men’s team, bursting onto the scene with spectacular debuts in the purple and gold. The two rookies finished second and third, respectively, in scoring on the year, with Brooks holding a slight advantage of 74.25 to Womack’s 74.40. Brooks, earned three top-10 finishes and two AllTournament honors (highlighted with a fifth-place finish at the OVC Championships) while setting the program’s freshman scoring mark with a 66 in the second round of the MTSU Intercollegiate. Womack earned a spot on the All-OVC Newcomer Team while posting two top-10 and one top-five finish. Both players sported the lowest scoring averages for a Tech freshman in over a decade.
The Most Improved Player awards went to sophomores Cameron Yeary and Shelby Johnson. Yeary shaved more than a full stroke off his scoring average from his rookie season, turning in a mark of 75.69. He ended the year with a splash, firing scores of 72 and 67 in the first two rounds of the OVC Championships, finishing in 22nd overall. Johnson went from playing in just four events as a redshirt freshman to competing in all 10 tournaments this season, also trimming over a full shot from her scoring average. She concluded the year with four top25 finishes and a 79.11 average.
Johnson also claimed the women’s team’s Most Dedicated Player honor while the men’s award went to senior Alexander Riddle. Riddle ended his fouryear career with a 76.06 scoring average, including a 75.50 mark this season. He notched two AllTournament honors on the year, placing fourth in the Samford Intercollegiate and Grover Page Classic.
Dabney Dickenson was named the Long Hitter for the men’s team for the second straight year.