BRUNSWICK, Ga.- On Wednesday night, the College of Coastal Georgia Athletics Department recognized its student-athletes for their hard work both on and off the field of play this season.

"Outside of graduation, I can think of no bigger celebration of our student-athletes than the Athletics Banquet," Interim Deputy Athletics Director Zack Rogers said.

"This something that was, unfortunately, halted because of COVID so it was great to be able to come together as a department and recognize the hard work and achievements of our athletes, staff and coaches," Rogers continued.

Senior softball player Hayley Dickerson and junior men's golfer George Langham were honored last night, receiving the award for Female and Male Athletes of the Year.

Dickerson so far this season, has been virtually unhittable boasting an ERA of just 1.21 which is second-best in the Sun Conference. Dickerson also has a conference leading 16 wins and has struck out 96 batters so far this season. She is also the newly minted program record holder for career wins and strikeouts. Dickerson has been named the Sun Conference Pitcher of the Week twice and is on pace to be a first team All-Sun Conference Player when it is all said and done.

Langham had a phenomenal regular season for the 5^th ranked Mariners. He currently sits as the 8^th best golfer in the NAIA, averaging 71.7 strokes per round. Through eight tournaments this season, Langham has finished in the top 15 six times, including five top 5 finishes and a first-place finish at the AAC Championship in October. Langham is in the running for Sun Conference Player of the Year and has vaulted the Mariners into NAIA National Title contention with the teams play over the last few months.

Senior softball player Melani Jones and junior men's tennis player Santiago Speranza were honored last night as the Female and Male Student-Athletes of the Year.

Jones has started every game this season for the Mariners at center field. She has a perfect 4.0 GPA throughout her time at Coastal Georgia and will no doubt be named a 2023 Daktronics NAIA Softball Scholar Athlete and All-Sun Conference Academic team member. Jones, along with her grades, has had a huge impact on the field as she has recently become the program leader for hits and stolen bases in a career.

Speranza was named to the President's List in the Fall for having a 4.0 and is an amazing 10-2 in his singles matches this season. Along with his schooling and tennis career, Speranza recently published his third book in print and his 9^th overall with book number 10 set to come out in October of this year. He has also been working on a screenplay for season two of Disney plus's show "Intertwined" which is set to come out in May.

"This is an exciting time for our athletics department," Rogers said. "This banquet not only allowed us to celebrate the past year, but also marks the start of a new era in Coastal Georgia Athletics."

Athlete of the Year Nominees:
Aymeric Bruno, Men's Tennis
Sonia Forney, Women's Basketball
Ana Gonzalez, Women's Tennis
Nick Jiles, Men's Basketball
Carlin Paulk, Women's Golf
Paula Perez Rosales, Volleyball

Student-Athlete of the Year Nominees:
Kenny Brown, Men's Basketball
Kristen Crooms, Women's Golf
Chloe Do Lago, Women's Tennis
Thomas Henderson, Men's Golf
Iesha Rhodin, Women's Basketball
Natalia Willhelm Heguaburu, Volleyball