Each year the USA South Athletic Conference presents its most prestigious awards by honoring one male and one female as the Student-Athletes of the Year. These student-athletes are recognized as recipients of the Don Scalf Award (male) and the Rita Wiggs Award (female). The 2022 Rita Wiggs Award winner is Averett University softball student-athlete, Hannah Thompson, while the 2022 Don Scalf Award goes to Covenant College men's tennis student-athlete Ben Luke.

To be eligible for each award a student-athlete must have competed in a NCAA-sponsored sport, earned an undergraduate degree no later than the summer 2022 term and have a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 2.50 on a 4.00 scale.

Don Scalf's commitment to the student-athlete, guardianship of the value of academic achievement and devotion to the principles of Division III athletics set a standard that holds steadfast in the Conference today. He taught for 36 years and coached for 18 at N.C. Wesleyan College. He also served as Athletic Director at N.C. Wesleyan for six years. During his coaching career his teams won Dixie Intercollegiate Athletic Conference basketball and golf championships. In addition, he was a founding father of the DIAC in 1963 and served as its Secretary-Treasurer for 25 years. The Scalf Award honoree is also the Conference's nominee for the Division III Commissioners Association (DIIICA) Men's Sports Student-Athlete of the Year.

Former Commissioner Rita Wiggs, a tireless advocate of women's collegiate athletics as well a constant encourager of service to one's community, was the USA South's first full-time Commissioner serving the League for 16 years. In the spring of 2016 she was inducted into the USA South Hall of Fame. The Wiggs Award honoree is also the Conference's nominee for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award and the Division III Commissioners Association (DIIICA) Women's Sports Student-Athlete of the Year. For more information on the NCAA Woman of the Year Award, click HERE.

 

Rita Wiggs Award: Hannah Thompson - Averett University

Thompson was a key member of Averett softball team for her four seasons on campus as she starred both at the plate and within the pitching circle. For her career, Thompson accumulated a batting average of .394 with 137 hits, 80 RBI, and 16 home runs. Thompson was a three-time All-Conference honoree, a member of the Conference All-Tournament Team once, and the 2019 USA South Rookie Pitcher of the Year. Also in 2019, Thompson collected All-America and All-Region accolades from the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA). Off the diamond, Thompson compiled a perfect 4.00 cumulative GPA while majoring in Business Administration with a concentration in accounting. Thompson found herself on the Averett President's List eight times and was a three-time USA South Academic All-Conference and Academic All-State selection. This past year, Thompson was named to the Academic All-District team after being honored as a NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete in 2019. In 2022, Thompson was named the Grace V. Crenshaw Award Bachelor Recipient for owning the second highest GPA at Averett. Additionally, Thompson collected the Averett Athletics Top GPA Award as a sophomore, junior, and senior. Finally, Thompson earned the Averett Business Department's Academic Excellence Award this past spring. Within the community, Thompson assisted in packaging items for children during Christmas, helping at a local food pantry, volunteering to help a nearby elementary school with its special needs program, and collecting supplies for an animal shelter's donation drive. 

What they are saying...

"I am honored and blessed to receive this award and represent the USA South Athletic Conference and Averett University. I would like to first thank my family who has always supported me and made my collegiate career possible. I'd also like to thank those at Averett, especially Athletic Director Meg Stevens, for providing me with an outstanding academic and athletic experience." - Hannah Thompson

"Hannah is a great example of an Averett student-athlete. She has such high academic standards, is an incredible athlete, and throughout her time she has continued to contribute to her community. Hannah has embodied our vision by achieving academic success, competing at an extremely high level on the field, and being part of our team in our community." - Meg Stevens, Averett Athletic Director

 

Don Scalf Award: Ben Luke - Covenant College

Luke was a two-year captain of the Covenant men's tennis program during his four seasons as a Scot. Playing his last two seasons at the top-singles position, Luke helped lead the Scots to two consecutive Conference Divisional Championships. During that two-year run, the team was undefeated in USA South regular season matches. He is a three-time All-Conference honoree, including a First Team All-League nod in 2021. Additionally, he was recognized as a member of the All-Sportsmanship Team in 2019. During his last two campaigns as a Scot, Luke compiled a 9-0 singles record with an 8-1 doubles mark during Conference play. In total, Luke's USA South singles record was 16-3 while totaling a 14-3 mark in doubles. Luke's current career includes a 31-23 singles record, the seventh-most wins in program history, to go with a 29-25 doubles record. In the classroom, Luke compiled a 3.90 cumulative undergraduate GPA while majoring in Physics. He is an eight-time member of the Dean's List, a seven-time member of the Covenant Athletic Honor Roll, a four-time USA South Academic All-Conference Team member, and named Academic All-District in 2021. Luke was published in Physics Journal and assisted his peers on the Covenant campus as he was a physics tutor for three years. Off of Lookout Mountain, Luke taught English as a second language in nearby Chattanooga.


What they are saying...

"Being selected as the Don Scalf Award recipient is an enormous honor for me. After having competed for four years at Covenant and knowing the talent that is within the USA South Conference, it is also a very humbling experience being chosen. I look back on the past four years with tremendous gratitude for the people who have shaped me and formed me, including wonderful friends, coaches, professors, and mentors. I am truly indebted to Covenant's unique community for the ways in which it has equipped me for life ahead. Forever and always, Go Scots!" - Ben Luke

"I'm beyond thrilled that Ben has been honored with this year's Don Scalf award. He's proven himself to be the epitome of what it looks like to pursue excellence in everything he does -- be it his diligence in his studies, his hunger to improve as an athlete and a tennis player, and most importantly, his desire to grow as a young man who loves Jesus. Ben has proven to be a loyal teammate, a tenacious competitor, and a wonderful member of our campus community for these past four years, and I'm excited to see how the Lord uses him in the years to come." - John Hirte, Covenant Men's Tennis Head Coach

To view past Don Scalf and Rita Wiggs Award winners, click HERE.