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Mercer Men's Soccer

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Thank you @rdavey4 for all of the time, dedication, and hard work you poured into our program. We wish you and your family the best of luck at Campbell. Once a Bear, always a Bear!

Coach Davey is the fourth member of Coach Ruzzo's coaching tree to earn a head coaching gig. https://t.co/E2i07kD5Lr

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The Southern Conference

who’s entering the ‘ville??? 👀
#itsallhere https://t.co/22uwxSSrs2

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VMI Athletics

Special Delivery from Coach Ingram and Moe📫🎟️

#RahVaMil | #Brotherhood https://t.co/gFizB6sPdN

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Wofford College

Summer camp fun 😄

Session II of the Kevin Giltner Basketball Camp is coming up July 27-30! Click the link below to find all the information and register today!

https://t.co/459Tp57FGo https://t.co/vMNscHGXFY

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Happy birthday to our Addison McElhaney! Wings Up!!! https://t.co/7hhLnXFjcw

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Happy Birthday to our Graduate Assistant Coach, Alex! 🥳🎈

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thanks to @WJHL11 for stopping by practice yesterday!

meet the team and watch an open practice next week on Thursday, July 23 at 6 PM inside Brooks Gym

#GoBucs | #FaithfulForForty https://t.co/vDEbgntkoA

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Western Carolina Football

“I am the man I am because of Western Carolina. I’m a Catamount… it changed my life.” 

- Fran Brown, defensive back at WCU, 2003-05 - head coach at Syracuse University at ACC Football Media Day

We’re still in the business of changing lives in #CatamountCountry! https://t.co/FcI2P4pulI

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Welcome to the family, Kiki 🐻🥰 #MUWS #GOBEARS https://t.co/Z8vBm8XG6b

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<div class="payload-richtext">SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Nexstar Media Group, Inc., Ingles Markets and the Southern Conference announced Friday a new five-year extension, which continues a partnership to broadcast select SoCon contests on Nexstar stations across the Southeast. The deal will usher in a second decade of the parties working together. Alongside game broadcasts, Ingles and Nexstar will be involved in the promotion and coverage of signature SoCon events. “Ingles is proud to support The Southern Conference with an extended five-year agreement,” Melissa Leavell, Ingles Advertising Director, said. “With a history built on character and a commitment to education, the Southern Conference is filled with traditions to be shared. That is why we have also partnered with Nexstar to bring all these traditions into your home every week with the Ingles SoCon Game of the Week. Thank you Nexstar and The Southern Conference for making Ingles part of the team.” "Regional television carries real weight across the cities and towns in the SoCon footprint. This agreement extends the capacity to tell the story of our 11 institutions, our student-athletes, and the towns that stand behind them,” said The Southern Conference Commissioner Michael Cross. “Nexstar has been a genuine partner in that work, and Ingles Markets continues to invest in this conference in a way few sponsors anywhere can match. Doubling down on the partners who are integrated in SoCon communities is a big part of what we mean when we say “It's All Here.” We're grateful to both and excited to keep building alongside them." The first games in the new agreement will take place during the 2026 football season. The package will also include men’s and women’s basketball games during the regular season and conference tournament. All games will air on either WSPA or WYCW. These affiliates in the Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville markets serve three SoCon schools. Last year the package included 30 broadcasts. "Nexstar and Ingles are proud to extend our commitment to Southern Conference athletics for another five years, reinforcing a partnership that has successfully connected fans with their favorite teams since 2018,” WSPA/WYCW General Manager Kenny Lawrence said. “We are honored to continue working alongside the Southern Conference and Ingles to deliver first-class coverage of championship-caliber competition across multiple sports, bringing these events to the conference's passionate and loyal fanbase throughout the year." Stations in other SoCon markets that have the ability to pick up games are WMYT (Charlotte), WWCW (Roanoke), WJHL (Tri-Cities), WCBD (Charleston), WGHP (Greensboro) and WBTW (Myrtle Beach). Although not Nexstar stations, EFLI (Chattanooga, TN) and WMUB (Macon, GA) will also have the opportunity to air games from this season’s package.</div>

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<div class="payload-richtext"><a href="https://soconsports.com/article/blt34a5a570fd55940e/">
 Previous SoCon Female Athlete of the Year Winners 
 </a>| <a href="https://soconsports.com/article/blta96166b755cd4122/">
 Previous SoCon Male Athlete of the Year Winners
 </a>SPARTANBURG, SC – Furman golfer Audrey Ryu was named 2025-2026 Southern Conference Female Athlete of the Year, and Mercer defensive end Andrew Zock was named 2025-2026 Bob Waters Southern Conference Male Athlete of the Year, the conference office announced on Thursday. The awards are selected annually by a voting panel comprising the conference's Directors of Athletics and one media member from each conference school. The awards recognize athletic achievement, academic performance, and civic involvement. The men's award was named after the late Bob Waters in 1991-1992. Waters served as the head football coach at Western Carolina from 1969 through 1988 and led the Catamounts to three top-10 national finishes and a berth in the 1983 Division I-AA National Championship Game. Ryu (Dublin, Ohio) is a repeat winner after claiming the honor in 2024-25 and is Furman's seventh-straight SoCon Female Athlete of the Year. The Furman women's golf program has claimed seven SoCon Female Athlete of the Year plaudits since the award's inception in 1989-90 – and the Paladins have been honored 14 times overall during that timeframe. Ryu won medalist honors for the second year in a row at the SoCon Women's Golf Championship, leading Coach Jeff Hull's team to another SoCon team title as well. A junior, she was named 2026 SoCon Women's Golfer of the Year and paced her team with a 72.73 stroke average. During the regular season, Ryu recorded six finishes inside the top 11, including a sixth-place effort at the Valspar Augusta Invitational and a seventh-place finish at the Cougar Classic. She was named SoCon Golfer of the Week three times. Off the course, Ryu carries a 3.96 GPA as a biology major and is also a concert pianist. Ryu is currently working with Prisma Health in cancer pathology clinical research. She has published computational chemistry research at Furman and works with Prisma Hospital's Institute of Translational Oncology Research. Ryu was named to the WGCA All-America Scholar Team and the CSC Academic All-District Team, as well as the SoCon Academic All-Conference Team and SoCon Academic Honor Roll. She is also on the Dean's List at Furman. Ryu was voted first or second on 17 of the 20 ballots this year, earning 11 first-place votes. She finished with 83 total points, ahead of Samford'sSam De Luca (51 points), UNC Greensboro's Brooklyn Shroyer (51 points), and ETSU's Makayla Bays (45 points). Zock (Citra, FL) is the first Mercer student-athlete to win the Bob Waters Male SoCon Athlete of the Year award since Bears' soccer standout Will Bagrou did so consecutively in 2016-17 and 2017-18. The 6-foot-2, 250-pound defensive end enjoyed a sensational sophomore season, culminating in the 2025 Buck Buchanan Award as the top defensive player in the FCS. Zock was a consensus FCS All-America selection in 2025, earning his status from six different organizations.  The 2025 SoCon Defensive Player of the Year was only the second player in SoCon history to earn the Buchanan Award, joining App State legend Dexter Coakley (1995, 1996) on an exclusive list.  Zock finished the season with 46 total tackles (24 solo) and school single-season marks for sacks (11.5), tackles for loss (20.0), and quarterback pressures (23). He added four pass breakups and two forced fumbles to bolster a Mercer defense that powered the Bears to another SoCon title and berth in the FCS Playoffs. In addition to his proficiency in tackling and pressuring opposing signal callers, Zock also made his mark in the classroom and community. He forged a 3.41 cumulative GPA in sports marketing and analytics, earning SoCon Academic All-Conference honors and a spot on the conference's Academic Honor Roll. Zock also participated in several initiatives with the school's 'Build The Bear' service program. Zock received 10 first-place votes to finish with 73 total points, just ahead of Furman's Diego Hernandez (59 points) and Samford's Jadin Booth (52 points). Voting in 2025-26 saw 100 percent participation, with all 20 ballots submitted for each award. </div>

2026 SoCon Athletes of the Year

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Southern Conference

Headlines

SoCon and Nexstar Media Group Announce Contract Extension

Latest News

Furman’s Ryu, Mercer’s Zock Named 2025-26 SoCon Athletes of the Year

The SoCon Announces 2025-2026 Academic Honor Roll

Southern Conference Partners with Spiideo to Modernize Instant Replay

Tennessee Tech Officially Joins SoCon

The SoCon Announces 2025-26 Academic All-Conference Teams

Samford's Franklin Finishes Fifth In The Nation In The 110-Meter Hurdles

Samford’s Franklin Advances To Men’s 110-Meter Hurdles Finals

Samford's Franklin Set To Compete At NCAA Championships

Furman's Doug Allison Named College Soccer News Coach of the Year

Samford's Franklin Advances To NCAA Championships In Men’s 110-Meter Hurdles

Edwards Competes At NCAA Preliminaries In Women’s 800 Meters

Furman's Miller & Ward Conclude NCAA East Preliminaries In Steeplechase

Furman's Velikonja Places 32nd In 5,000m At NCAA East Preliminaries

Edwards Advances In Women’s 800 Meters

Furman men and women claim Southern Conference all-sports races

Furman's Woodall Finishes 42nd in 1,500m At NCAA East Preliminaries

Samford’s Franklin Advances To NCAA Quarterfinals In Men’s 110-Meter Hurdles

The Southern Conference Announces 2026 Graduate Scholars

The Citadel Tabbed No. 3 Seed in Atlanta Regional for NCAA Baseball Championship

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