ROME, Ga. – During the 2004-2005 academic year the USA South Athletic Conference Student-Athlete Advisory Committee instituted a Conference-wide Sportsmanship Award. On Wednesday, May 18th, the USA South is announced the Sportsmanship Award winners for the 2021-22 spring sports season. Among them included the Salem tennis team, which won six matches, including four in USA South play, during the 2021-22 campaign.
The Salem tennis program, won three of their six matches at Bert Lain Tennis Center in the 2021-22 season. The Spirits posted four wins in USA South Conference play, tying the most league wins in program history with the 2013-14 team.
Under the tutelage of head coach Ed Steele, Salem earned six wins in their final seven matches, ending the season on a four-match winning streak that began with a forfeit win over N.C. Wesleyan on April 18th. The Spirits followed that by winning a 9-0 decision over Johnson & Wales (April 21) and 6-3 wins at Mary Baldwin (April 22) and Hollins (April 23). The other two wins came against USA South Conference foes Greensboro (April 9) and William Peace (April 13).
There is a Sportsmanship Award in place for the 12 Conference-sponsored team sports. Men's and women's cross country, men's and women's golf along with men's and women's track & field are not included due to a lack of a conference schedule in those particular sports. For each of the other sports, all team members vote for the teams they deemed to have demonstrated the best overall sportsmanship throughout the season.
The team garnering the most votes receives that sports' Sportsmanship Award. The institution which wins the most individual sport awards will be presented with the overall USA South Sportsmanship Trophy. The award was developed as a result of the SAAC's commitment to maintaining a sportsmanlike environment on each of the campuses that make up the USA South Conference.
The Student-Athlete Advisory Committee hopes that by awarding a Sportsmanship Award, the members of the USA South will understand the importance of this issue. It is vital that good sportsmanship be demonstrated in the arena of competition.
These honorees, along with the recipients from the fall and winter sports, can be found below:
Spring Sportsmanship Award Winners
Baseball - LaGrange College
Softball - Wesleyan College
Men's Tennis - Piedmont College
Women's Tennis - Salem College
Men's Lacrosse - Southern Virginia University
Women's Lacrosse - Southern Virginia University
Winter Sportsmanship Award Winners
Men's Basketball - Covenant College
Women's Basketball - Wesleyan College
Fall Sportsmanship Award Winners
Football - Southern Virginia University
Men's Soccer - Covenant College
Women's Soccer - Agnes Scott College
Volleyball - Mary Baldwin University