SoCon Athletes of the Year Announced

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. – University of Tennessee at Chattanooga defensive end Davis Tull and Samford University outside hitter Michaela Reesor have been named the 2015 Southern Conference Male and Female Athletes of the Year, the league announced today (May 26). Tull and Reesor will be honored as part of the league’s annual Honors Dinner on Wednesday night in Hilton Head Island, S.C.

Reesor becomes the first Bulldog to ever be named the league’s Female Athlete of the Year. She was named first-team all-conference for the third consecutive season in 2014 and was named to this year’s all-tournament team as the Bulldogs won the conference volleyball tournament. Reesor was named the league’s Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 8. The Caledon, Ontario, Canada, native started all 32 matches last fall and led the SoCon in kills (3.77 kps) and ranked second in points (4.20 pps).

She finished her career as Samford’s all-time leader in attacks (4,107) and kills (1,639) and ranks fifth in school history with 1,059 digs. In addition to her success at Samford, Reesor has also competed for Team Canada’s B Team on three different occasions.

A four-year member of Samford’s Dean’s List, she was named to the league’s Academic All-Conference team three straight years and carries a 3.90 GPA in journalism and mass communications. During her time at Samford, she volunteered with Hippo Africa, the Ronald McDonald House, Habitat for Humanity, the Alabama Kidney Foundation and Cornerstone Middle School.

Tull becomes the first Moc to win the Male Athlete of the Year Award. As a senior, he was named the league’s Defensive Player of the Year for the third straight season. Tull was named a first-team All-American by both the Sports Network and the Associated Press and was named a finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award, given to the nation’s top defensive player in FCS.

This past fall, he led the conference with 10.5 sacks and finished his career as the league’s all-time leader in career sacks (37.0). Tull helped the Mocs win their first outright Southern Conference championship since 1984 and was a part of UTC’s team that captured its first-ever win in the FCS Playoffs with a 35-14 victory over Indiana State last December.

Tull took part in numerous community service events, including the Bloodanooga Blood Drive and the Get In The Game Bone Marrow Registry. He also assisted with a local kids clinic at Finley Stadium. A two-time Academic All-American, Tull graduated with a degree in health & human performance in the fall of 2014 and was recently drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the fifth round of the NFL Draft.

The Athlete of the Year Awards are selected annually by the Southern Conference athletics directors and a media member representing each conference school. The award recognizes athletic achievement, academic performance and civic involvement. Prior to 1990-91, the award was selected solely by members of the Southern Conference Sports Media Association. Beginning in 1991-92, the men’s award was named after the late Bob Waters, who was Western Carolina’s head football coach from 1969-88.