Tennis Hogs on SEC Freshman Honor Roll

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Razorback netters Chris Nott and Nick Spinazze were two of Arkansas’ 46 first-year student-athletes named to the 2008 Southeastern Conference Freshman Academic Honor Roll.

Highlighted by nine women’s swimming and diving team members, Arkansas’ 46 selections ranked as the fifth-best in the league this year. South Carolina topped the list with 67 selections followed by Florida with 66, Alabama with 55 and Kentucky with 52.

The Razorbacks were in fifth place with 46 selections. Tennessee and Vanderbilt tied for sixth place with 44 with Auburn (43), Georgia (41), Mississippi State (40), Ole Miss (31) and LSU (20) rounding out the 12 member institutions.

Nott (International Business) enjoyed a successful season for the Razorbacks with a team-high 25 singles wins, the most by an Arkansas freshman since Blake Strode won 27 matches in 2006. Nott also had 14 doubles wins, good for third on the team, and ended the season on a six-match winning streak.

Spinazze (Finance and Banking) tallied a 5-5 record during his freshman season, which included two wins at his first collegiate event, the South Carolina Invitational. He teamed with Matt Hogan and Branden Joost to earn doubles victories during the spring season.

To be selected, each student-athlete must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 or above, be on a scholarship or be a letterwinner, have completed 24 semester hours of non-remedial credit at the institution and have been a member of the varsity team for that sport’s entire NCAA Championship season.

“We are proud of our Razorback freshmen student-athletes and their accomplishments in athletic competition and in the classroom,” Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Jeff Long said. “The first year of college is challenging for any student, much less managing the additional demands of student-athletes in their given sport to compete in the nation’s toughest conference. The men and women that represent the University of Arkansas on the freshmen academic honor roll have proven that with hard work and dedication it is possible to achieve academic excellence while also attaining athletic success.”

The Razorback women’s swimming and diving team under the direction of head coach Jeff Poppell paced Arkansas with nine selections. They include: Gina Bargiachi (animal science), Jessica Clark (pre-nursing), Megan Haskins (pre-business), Kylie Kastes (English), Brittany Kimmitt (communications), Ashley Largo (political science), Erin Neumann (childhood education), Shara Sutphen (pre-nursing) and Erica Totten (international business).

Football had seven selections followed by six for men’s cross country/track and field and five for women’s cross country/track and field and softball. The Razorback soccer team had four student-athletes selected and the gymnastics team added three. There were two selections from women’s basketball and men’s tennis and one each from the men’s and women’s golf teams and volleyball.

The other first-year student-athletes included on the SEC Freshman Academic Honor Roll include: Brittney Richardson (W. Basketball, Kinesiology), Ashlea Williams (W. Basketball, Biology), Damario Ambrose (Football, Information Systems), Jake Bequette (Football, Financial Management), Nathan Dick (Football, Kinesiology), Grant Freeman (Football, Agricultural Business), Seth Oxner (Football, Kinesiology), Rhett Richardson (Football, Business), Crosby Tuck (Football, Kinesiology), Samuel Chavez (M. Golf, Undeclared), Kelli Shean (W. Golf, General Business), Stacy Bartlett (Gymnastics, Food, Human Nutrition, & Hsptly), Molly Lewis (Gymnastics, Undeclared), Kathryn Maschino (Gymnastics, Pre-Medical), Danielle Alexander (Soccer, Accounting), Sam Bolton (Soccer, Pre-Nursing), Beth McVean (Soccer, Kinesiology), Kelly O’Connor (Soccer, International Relations), Amanda Caldwell (Softball, International Business), Leslie Dixon (Softball, Health Science), Lauren Iverson (Softball, Childhood Education), Kim Jones (Softball, Kinesiology), Layne McGuirt (Softball, Recreation), Gina Bargiachi (W. Swimming, Animal Science), Jessica Clark (W. Swimming, Pre-Nursing), Megan Haskins (W. Swimming, Pre-Business), Kylie Kastes (W. Swimming, English), Brittany Kimmitt (W. Swimming, Communication), Ashley Largo (W. Swimming, Political Science), Erin Neumann (W. Swimming, Childhood Education), Shara Sutphen (W. Swimming, Pre-Nursing), Erica Totten (W. Swimming, International Business), Lane Boyer (M. Track, Geology), Michael Chinchar (M. Track, International Relations), Luke Laird (M. Track, Horticulture, Landscape and Turf Science), Alex Neff (M. Track, Undeclared), Duncan Phillips (M. Track, History), Mitchell Scott (M. Track, Psychology), Lauren Cox (W. Track, Pre-Nursing), Tara Diebold (W. Track, Communication Disorders), Mallory Lawrence (W. Track, Pre-Nursing), Jillian Rosen (W. Track, Biology), Catherine White (W. Track, Food Science), Hillary McCormick (Volleyball, Communication).

For more information about Arkansas athletics please log on to ArkansasRazorbacks.com.