Story by Thomas Corhern
Cookeville Herald-Citizen
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. — There were dominant performances for the
Tennessee Tech men’s athletes this year.
But the 10 finalists for the Male Athlete of the Year award
rewrote the definition of the word.
Baseball’s Tristan Archer shattered the Golden Eagle record
book before getting selected in this year’s Major League
Baseball entry draft by the Milwaukee Brewers. Junior Matthew
Bishop led the Tech men’s cross country team, finishing in
the team’s top spot in three meets this past year.
Men’s basketball senior Jud Dillard finished second in the
Ohio Valley Conference in scoring, then made his mark on the career
chart. Football senior Will Johnson rebounded from an injury season
and put together a fantastic defensive effort on the field.
Senior quarterback Tre Lamb was the football team’s
offensive MVP, despite missing the final four games of the season,
and still put up some impressive marks. Junior baseball player
Daniel Miles made an impact at the plate in just his first season
with the team.
Men’s basketball junior Dennis Ogbe had a breakout season
and led the OVC in field goal percentage. Highly touted wide
receiver transfer Da’Rick Rogers set school records in his
redemption year after getting dismissed from the University of
Tennessee. Junior baseball player Zach Stephens led the Golden
Eagle baseball team in seven offensive categories.
But none of them had as dominant of a season as Tech senior tennis
player Syrym Abdukhalikov.
He just didn’t lose.
With that, Abdukhalikov was named the 2013 Tech Male Athlete of
the Year, the first recipient of the award for the Golden Eagle
men’s tennis program since the award’s inception in
1994.
In his two seasons of Ohio Valley Conference play, Abdukhalikov
went 17-0 in the regular season as the No. 1 player in singles and
doubles.
This past year, he only lost twice in the dual match season,
falling to Malte Stropp 7-6, 8-6, 4-6, 3-6 from then-No. 10 ranked
Mississippi State, then 2-6, 4-6 to Adrien Lengeard from UNC
Asheville.
And that was it.
Read the complete story in the Cookeville Herald-Citizen by
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June 4, 2013
Tech tennis roster a lesson in world geography
April 20, 2013
Top-Seeded Golden Eagles open OVC tournament play Saturday
April 20, 2013
Belmont comes out above 4-2 over Golden Eagles in OVC Semis
April 18, 2013
Highest OVC tennis honors go to champion Golden Eagles
April 12, 2013
Golden Eagles wrap up their season on the road this weekend
April 10, 2013
Tennis match at Lipscomb cancelled due to impending weather
April 6, 2013
Tech keeps OVC streak alive with 5-1 win over SIUE
April 3, 2013
Abdukhalikov named OVC Tennis Player of the Week
March 20, 2013
Match versus Jacksonville State postponed until April 3
March 16, 2013
Golden Eagles sweep Tigers to net first win of the season
March 4, 2013
UNC Asheville claims 5-2 match over Golden Eagles
February 10, 2013
Golden Eagles handed 5-0 loss at No. 10 Mississippi State
February 8, 2013
Golden Eagles visit No. 10 Mississippi State this weekend
February 3, 2013
Wins at top not enough, Tech falls at Appalachian State, 4-3
February 1, 2013
Golden Eagles bid for first win Sunday at Appalachian State
February 1, 2013
Golden Eagles predicted to finish first in OVC tennis race
January 27, 2013
Golden Eagle tennis team falls at Winthrop, 5-2
January 26, 2013
Golden Eagle tennis team topped by Charlotte, 6-1
January 26, 2013
Tennis team visits Charlotte, Winthrop this weekend
January 21, 2013
No. 63 Georgia State claims 6-1 win over Golden Eagles; Syrym wins
January 20, 2013
Chattanooga edges Golden Eagle tennis squad, 4-3
January 19, 2013
Golden Eagles topped by Oklahoma State in Knoxville
January 17, 2013
Golden Eagles handed 4-0 season-opening loss at No. 19 Tennessee
January 14, 2013
Tennis schedule opens with ranked teams, tough road stretch
November 4, 2012
Golden Eagle players get wins at Alabama, Carolinas Invitationals
November 2, 2012
Four inducted into TTU Sports Hall of Fame
November 1, 2012
Four Tech players competing this weekend in Alabama, South Carolina
October 25, 2012
Randy Smith to be inducted into TTU Sports Hall of Fame Nov. 2
October 21, 2012
Tech pair each nets singles victories at USTA/ITA Regionals
October 18, 2012
Two Golden Eagles in Memphis for USTA/ITA Regional Tournament
October 11, 2012
Five Golden Eagles head to Knoxville for Tennessee Invitational
September 23, 2012
Tech players win three championships at Louisville Fall Invitational
September 21, 2012
Golden Eagles find succes on first day of Louisville Fall Invitational
September 20, 2012
Golden Eagle tennis team at Louisville Invitational Friday-Sunday
September 8, 2012
Tech duo stuns second-seeded Gator pair in Southern Intercollegiates
September 4, 2012
TTU Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2012 to include four inductees