STORY, PERRY VOTED AS UT MARTIN ATHLETES OF THE YEAR FOR 2019-20 SEASON
5/15/2020 12:15:00 PM | Golf, Women's Basketball
MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin athletic department and presenting partner Leaders Credit Union announced women's basketball star Chelsey Perry as its Bettye Giles Female Athlete of the Year and golf standout Jack Story as its Bob Carroll Male Athlete of the Year for the 2019-20 campaign.
For the first time ever, the two award winners were decided by an online vote following a weeklong social media campaign. In 8,000 votes, Perry's 45.5 percent topped the field over finalists Abbie Hopkins (equestrian, 32.8 percent), Kaitlin Korinek (rifle, 15.6 percent) and Alexis Grandys (cross country, 5.9 percent). On the men's side, Story earned 68.8 percent of the 3,942 votes, defeating finalists Terry Williams (football, 24.3 percent), Nick Wohlbold (baseball, 3.8 percent) and Quintin Dove (men's basketball, 2.9 percent).
"The COVID-19 pandemic prevented us from having our annual UTMmy's this season but we still wanted to keep the tradition of naming Athletes of the Year," UT Martin athletic director Kurt McGuffin said. "We thank all of the fans who took the time to vote for a great group of eight finalists. Chelsey and Jack both had outstanding individual seasons which led to the success of their teams. Congratulations to our winners."
"I thank God for allowing me to be here today," Perry said during an online acceptance speech. "I thank the University of Tennessee at Martin for accepting me, my coaches for seeing greater in me, my teammates for pushing me and our families, friends and community for supporting me whether it's on social media or in the stands. This award means a lot to me and I am so grateful. It shows that my dedication, faith and leadership didn't go in vain."
"Someone told me that the people we surround ourselves with have the biggest influence on our behavior, attitudes and results," Story said as part of a virtual acceptance speech. "I believe that who we are around and what they have us thinking, saying, doing and becoming sets the course of our life. I would like to thank my coaches, teammates, friends, family and all of those who voted on social media. Most importantly, I would like to thank God for blessing me through all of my successes and failures. I pray that I have represented him and the university well."
Both Perry and Story will officially receive their hardware at a Skyhawk home football game in 2020.
For the first time ever, the two award winners were decided by an online vote following a weeklong social media campaign. In 8,000 votes, Perry's 45.5 percent topped the field over finalists Abbie Hopkins (equestrian, 32.8 percent), Kaitlin Korinek (rifle, 15.6 percent) and Alexis Grandys (cross country, 5.9 percent). On the men's side, Story earned 68.8 percent of the 3,942 votes, defeating finalists Terry Williams (football, 24.3 percent), Nick Wohlbold (baseball, 3.8 percent) and Quintin Dove (men's basketball, 2.9 percent).
"The COVID-19 pandemic prevented us from having our annual UTMmy's this season but we still wanted to keep the tradition of naming Athletes of the Year," UT Martin athletic director Kurt McGuffin said. "We thank all of the fans who took the time to vote for a great group of eight finalists. Chelsey and Jack both had outstanding individual seasons which led to the success of their teams. Congratulations to our winners."
Perry was named a Women's Basketball Coaches Association All-American honorable mention as well as Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year in 2019-20. A junior forward out of Middleton, Tenn., she led all of NCAA Division I basketball with 286 field goals made and additionally ranked amongst the national leaders in total points (740, second), points per game (23.1, third) and blocks (86, 11th). She set an OVC record for most Player of the Week accolades in a single season (eight) while helping guide the Skyhawks to a 22-10 overall record and the OVC regular season championship.Congratulation to Chelsey Perry from @UTMartinWBB on being named this year's Bettye Giles Female Athlete of the Year!
— UT Martin Athletics (@UTMSports) May 15, 2020
🏀 WBCA All-American
🏀 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Finalist
🏀 OVC Player of the Year
🏀 Ranked 2nd in all of NCAA in Scoring (740 points) pic.twitter.com/PakyYWAQpi
"I thank God for allowing me to be here today," Perry said during an online acceptance speech. "I thank the University of Tennessee at Martin for accepting me, my coaches for seeing greater in me, my teammates for pushing me and our families, friends and community for supporting me whether it's on social media or in the stands. This award means a lot to me and I am so grateful. It shows that my dedication, faith and leadership didn't go in vain."
Hailing from Dickson, Tenn., Story led UT Martin in virtually every statistical category. The senior southpaw ranked second in the OVC with a 71.0 stroke average, finishing in the top-eight in six of the Skyhawks' nine tournaments. He won a pair of events, shattering the 18-year event record for best score at the Murray State Invitational (Sept. 9-10) while also topping the field at the F&M Bank APSU Intercollegiate (Oct. 14-15). He was named OVC Golfer of the Week three times and in September he became the program's first-ever OVC Golfer of the Month, helping UT Martin win five tournament team titles in 2019-20.Congratulation to Jack Story from @SkyhawkGolf on being named this year's Bob Carroll Male Athlete of the Year!
— UT Martin Athletics (@UTMSports) May 15, 2020
⛳ 71.0 Stroke Average (2nd in OVC)
⛳ Six Top-8 Tournament Finishes
⛳ Two Individual Medalist Tournament Victories
⛳ 3-time OVC Golfer of the Week pic.twitter.com/pgpm9Q4M44
"Someone told me that the people we surround ourselves with have the biggest influence on our behavior, attitudes and results," Story said as part of a virtual acceptance speech. "I believe that who we are around and what they have us thinking, saying, doing and becoming sets the course of our life. I would like to thank my coaches, teammates, friends, family and all of those who voted on social media. Most importantly, I would like to thank God for blessing me through all of my successes and failures. I pray that I have represented him and the university well."
Both Perry and Story will officially receive their hardware at a Skyhawk home football game in 2020.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
/ Golf
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