And, suddenly, the holiday season is done. Jan. 1 has come and gone, and the red and green decorations have been chucked out to the curb. Everyone becomes a little bit grumpy as they head back to their jobs or classes, and the reality of hard work sinks in again.
The media, too, has had to change what it’s talking about. News anchors can no longer spend their time focusing on how much the economy’s tummy ache is going to affect Christmas and Hanukkah gift sales.
Sure, there’s the inauguration. But before we know it, that will have come and gone along with the nice little stretch break that the University is giving to students to celebrate. What, then, is next?
The answer is awards shows. It seems every important facet of our popular culture has its own major awards program for every newspaper and TV channel to speculate about and cover. Movies get the Oscars, music gets the Grammys, ridiculous facial hair gets the World Beard and Moustache Championship, held this year during a May 23 ceremony in Anchorage, Alaska.
What about Virginia athletics, then? Shouldn’t the athletes and coaches in Charlottesville get a big awards ceremony to dole out trophies honoring their great performances?
Well, this year they do. It is my pleasure to present the first annual Fall Tommy Awards. The focus of these awards will be athletics during this past sports season. These awards are called the Tommys because each athlete, team and coach honored will receive a Thomas Jefferson bobblehead as a prize for their selection. And with no further ado, on to the awards!
Male athlete of the season: Eugene Monroe, football. Runner-up: Emil Heineking, cross country.
Being an offensive tackle isn’t a glorious job. Aside from color commentators on ESPN occasionally pointing out how hard the big guys on the line work, there’s little celebration of the position. It’s easy to call offensive linemen’s impact indirect, as rarely do they ever touch the ball or anyone with the ball. The offensive line, though, is often argued as being the most essential component of a football team. That Monroe’s performance was notable enough for him to be selected as a second-team All-American in spite of the Cavaliers’ general ineptness on offense shows just how convincing his playing was.
Heineking was a solid contender for this award, too, because of his stellar performance in a sport that generally goes unnoticed. With little fanfare, Heineking earned a spot as an All-American for the second season. He also finished 26th in the nation, the best mark for a Virginia athlete in nearly a decade.
Female athlete of the season: Mei Christensen, swimming. Runner up: Nikki Krzysik, soccer.
I normally would consider swimming to be a spring sport, but Christensen has swum so well up to now that she takes the award even without a postseason to prove herself. She’s already set a couple of ACC records, team records and gym records this year, both individually and on relays. She swims best in backstroke, but leads the team in 50 meter freestyle as well.
Krzysik made the NSCAA All-American first team and was one of 15 finalists for the Hermann Trophy, women’s soccer’s Heisman. She shone brightly even in the sport’s most competitive conference.
Rookie of the season: Paige Selenski, field hockey. Runner up: (tie) Michelle Vittese, field hockey. Floor Vogels, field hockey.
Virginia’s field hockey team made an unlikely run to the national spotlight, falling in the NCAA Championship quarterfinals to conference opponent Wake Forest. The team’s new and exciting excellence is owed in large part to the superior crop of freshmen this year.
Selenski, the National Rookie of the Year and a first-team all-conference selection, headlined the group with consistent play, big numbers and clutch toughness. Vogels and Vittese provided plenty of support themselves as each was selected as second-team All-ACC. Overall, fans of the field hockey team have a lot to be excited about in the future.
Coach of the season: Jason Vigilante, cross country. Runner up: Alexandra Kyser, field hockey.
In his first season running the cross country program, Vigilante won automatic berths for both the men’s and women’s program — the women’s berth being a surprising upset — and elevated the team to new heights. He was picked as the ACC Coach of the Year, as well as the Southeast Division coach of the year.
Kyser as the runner-up pick is a little bit unconventional, as she is an assistant coach. She coordinates recruiting, however, and the Cavaliers’ ascension to national competitiveness wouldn’t have happened without the first-rate batch of rookies on the team this year.
Team of the season: cross country. Runner up: field hockey.
The men won the ACC again and finished 14th in the nation, while the women won at just the right time to have a shot at the national title. It was overall a rough year for Virginia athletics this fall, but the cross country team was one that managed to excel both in the conference and on the national level.
Virginia’s field hockey team was a surprise and should continue to improve. Its only weakness this season was an inability to fully execute against conference opponents.
Next up is a section of the show that I call Dan’s picks, where I will look beyond numbers and records and honor some of my personal favorite Virginia athletes and coaches this season.
Dan’s pick, athlete: Marc Verica, football.
No sport gets as much attention as football, and no position gets as much attention as quarterback. Verica, for practical purposes the team’s fourth-stringer last season, was thrust into the spotlight after two players ahead of him on the depth chart were excused from the team, and Verica was put in as starter ahead of Scott Deke.
Verica somehow managed to find exactly the attitude the team needed: positive, relaxed and accountable. Though his play on the field wasn’t good enough to fully revive the Cavaliers, his demeanor and performance in front of the microphone is worthy of a trophy — or maybe a bobblehead.
Dan’s pick, coach: Lee Maes, volleyball.
It’s hard to call a season a success when a team falls below expectations set at the beginning of the season, but there is some silver lining for volleyball fans. After following the team and the coach closely throughout Maes’s first season with Virginia, I can confidently tell the players that they have a coach with a long-term vision and a coach whose eye for detail and technique will bring out the best in each player he coaches.
So there you have it, folks — the first annual Fall Tommy Awards. I hope you enjoyed it even though a sports column doesn’t have quite the same glamour of a four-hour Hollywood event. Since they didn’t have a chance to walk on a real red — or orange and blue — carpet, be sure to congratulate them if you see them around Grounds for winning these very prestigious awards.
And if any of you athletes, teams or coaches who won an award read this and want to collect your Tommy bobblehead, get in touch with me. Maybe we can even get dressed up and have a photo shoot with Ryan Seacrest.
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