Shankman, Kasten honored for coaching prowess
The recent conclusion of two fall sports at Rhodes College brought some good news for a pair of Lynx coaches. For the second consecutive season,
was named the U.S. Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association Men’s South/Southeast Regional Coach of the Year, and
in her second season at the helm of the field hockey team, was chosen as the Southern Athletic Association Coach of the Year.
In what arguably was the most successful men’s season in Shankman’s 29 years at the school, the Lynx won the SAA Championship and the South/Southeast Region title before moving onto the NCAA Division 3 Championship in Wisconsin. There, No. 22 Rhodes, captured a program-best 17th-place finish. On an individual note, junior
came in 37th out of field of 280 (24:58) to earn All-American honors.
Other Rhodes national participants included
Robert Shankman Kasten,
Spencer Fields, Dominic Voehler, Adam Hearn, Reece Stevens, Benjamin Freeman Jared Briant.
and With Kasten pushing all the right buttons, Lynx field hockey survived a 2-1 match against Centre College to win the SAA championship title. All-Tournament team selections were
Jillian Christensen, Meghan Harmon, Daryl Perry Nina Migneco.
Tournament MVP Rhodes eventually dropped a 3-0 decision at Washington & Jefferson College in the NCAA Tournament, but Kasten was recognized for a 12-4 season, including an six-game winning streak.
"It was a tremendous honor from the SAA," Kasten said. "It was a fun and exciting season, and the 18 girls on the team are the big reason to the success of the program this year. I'm thankful for all of the support from those in the Rhodes athletic department, and Rhodes College that gave me the wonderful opportunity two years ago to take over this amazing program."
Helping her coach shine bright was SAA Offensive Player of the Year
The junior forward was the conference leader in goals, assists and points. At the close of the year, Mules had 24 goals and 15 assists for a total of 63
Mules. Lindsay Toler Freyaldenhoven
and
Hailey
points.
Tiger rifle near the top
While the University of Memphis men’s basketball and football teams continue to dominate the headlines, the school’s rifle squad is also making some noise on a national level.
According to the latest Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association poll, the Tigers are now No. 4 in the country.
The CRCA poll showed Memphis with a No. 16 ranking one month ago. Victories over top 10 foes NC State and Kentucky propelled the Tigers to seventh. More recently at Jacksonville State, Memphis won the Gamecock Invitational with a school-record aggregate score of 4689 (2332 smallbore/2357 air rifle).
Coached by the Tigers received outstanding individual performances from (1176 aggregate), (1172) and
(1171) to knock off the likes of
Kimm Dan Hermsmeier, Leighton Dempster Levi Clark Arielle
No. 8 Nebraska. They will return to action Jan. 20 against Akron in hopes of catching the nation’s Top 3 teams: TCU, Murray State and West Virginia.
CBU, UT Martin athletes honored
With a plethora of sports taking place, local athletes are racking up individual awards for their playing ability. Here’s a few honorees:
**University of Tennessee at Martin guard was chosen as the Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Week. The former White Station standout scored 14 points in her first career start against IUPUI. Versus Arkansas State, Griffin had 12 points and six rebounds versus Arkansas State.
**The Gulf South Conference named Christian Brothers University guard
its Freshman of the Week. Against Lincoln Memorial, Deifel had 17 points, five rebounds, two steals and two assists in 26 minutes of an 81-75 victory. The Cincinnati
Deifel Damiah Griffin Nick
native is averaging 10.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game for the Bucs. **Former Southaven receiver
was one of three UT Martin players selected for the All-Ohio Valley Conference football team. With 67 catches for 736 yards and three touchdowns, Williams earned All-Newcomer honors. Williams also returned kickoffs and punts for the Skyhawks.
**Freshman recently became the third CBU cross-country runner in as many years to land a spot on the All-South Region team. With a time of 22:45, the native of Germany finished 19th out of 130 runners to lead the Lady Bucs to a 13th-place finish at the NCAA South Regional.
Sunday Sports Brunch is a weekly look at movers, shakers and newsmakers on the Memphis sports scene, from youth level to the pros. If you have an item of interest, please contact Chris Van Tuyl at christopher.vantuyl@commercialappeal.com.
Williams Terry Johanna Wistokat