Special to the News

01/30 at 12:59 AM

A total of 34 Auburn student-athletes have been named to the 2009-10 Southeastern Conference Fall Academic Honor Roll, announced Friday by SEC Commissioner Mike Slive.

The 2009-10 SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll is based on grades from the 2009 Spring, Summer and Fall terms.

Auburn football had the most athletes earn SEC Academic Honor Roll distinctions with 19, followed by women’s soccer (10) and volleyball (five).

The football honorees include Gabe Barrett (English), Mike Berry (Public Administration), Chandler Brooks (Wildlife), Neil Caudle (Building Science), Wade Christopher (Biomedical Sciences), Antonio Coleman (Health Promotion), Jared Cooper (General Social Science), John Cubelic (Radio, TV & Film), Zac Etheridge (Public Administration), Josh Harris (Political Science), Morgan Hull (Biomedical Sciences), Walter McFadden (Political Science), Ryan Pugh (Building Science), Ashton Richardson (Animal Sciences — Pre-Vet), Chris Todd (Physical Education), Tommy Trott (Public Administration), Barrett Trotter (Undeclared Liberal Arts), Derek Winter (Management) and Bailey Woods (Public Administration).

The Auburn soccer team members that were recognized include Monica Afanador (Public Relations), Stephanie Fransoso (Biomedical Sciences), Mary Frierson (Political Science), Heather Havron (Marketing), Becca Howell (Marketing), Julie King (Undeclared Liberal Arts), Mary Nicholson (Pre-Nursing Science), Jenni Prescott (Early Childhood Education), Addie Ragsdale (Graphic Design) and Lydia Townsend (Radio, TV & Film).

The Auburn volleyball student-athletes who were selected include Elizabeth Crouch (Exercise Science), Lauren Mellor (Merchandising, Production Design and Management), Sara Shanks (Exercise Science) Christina Solverson (Pre-Polymer and Fiber Engineering) and Jonelle Wallace (Marketing/Finance).

AU Sprinters excel at Clemson Games
CLEMSON, S.C. — Sophomore Marcus Rowland and Junior Sheniqua Ferguson posted the fastest times in the nation this year in the men’s and women’s 60-meter dashes, respectively, to highlight the opening day of competition for the Auburn men’s and women’s track and field teams Friday at the Clemson Games.

Ferguson automatically qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships by winning the women’s race in 7.22 seconds. She shared the nation’s best time entering the meet at 7.28 seconds but improved on that Friday while posting the third-best time in school history.

Rowland just missed the NCAA automatic qualifying time in the men’s race, but his time of 6.61 seconds easily met the provisional standard and topped the previous nation-leading mark by .01 seconds. It was a personal best for him and moved him into a tie for second in Auburn indoor history in that event.

Ferguson and Rowland were not the only sprinters to excel, as Auburn took three of the top four spots in both sprints. In the men’s race, sophomore Harry Adams was second in the final with a time of 6.72 seconds, after clocking a 6.69 in the prelims that provisionally qualified him for the NCAA meet and ranks fourth in school history.

Junior Michael DeHaven was fourth in 6.84 seconds.

Junior Joanna Atkins was second in the women’s 60 meters with a provisional qualifying time of 7.32 seconds, while sophomore Nivea Smith was fourth in 7.50 seconds.

“I’m really pleased with our effort today,” head coach Ralph Spry said. “We won a lot of events, but more importantly, we had a lot of quality times and marks. It’s really phenomenal to record the fastest times in the nation in both the men’s and women’s 60-meter dashes, and it’s just the tip of the iceberg for that group. We looked reallyv focused, and for it being just our second meet, I’m really happy with the performance.”

Also on Friday in the women’s 60-meter hurdles, junior Krystal Bodie took second place with a time of 8.35 seconds that ranks fourth best in school history and improved on her previous provisional qualifying time.

Senior Danielle Gilchrist was third in 8.43 seconds, and senior Amelia Anderson was fourth in 8.50.

Auburn also had the top two finishers in both the men’s and women’s miles. In the men’s race, sophomore Jeff Sanders won in 4:17.08, while senior Scott Novack was second in 4:21.90. Junior Amber Riley won the women’s race in 5:03.97, just ahead of senior Laurel Pritchard who finished in 5:08.64.

Auburn’s victories also came in the field events, as the Tigers won both the men’s and women’s high jumps. In the men’s event, sophomore Ryan Fleck won with a leap of 2.11 meters (6-11), improving on his season best but falling just short of his personal indoor best.

In the women’s competition, freshman Maya Pressley was the winner with a jump of 1.76 meters (5-9.25) that ties her for seventh in school history, while sophomore Monica Carney tied for third with a mark of 1.70 meters (5-7).

In the women’s long jump, Anderson was second with a mark of 5.74 meters (18-10), while junior Erika Akins was fourth with a leap of 5.50 meters (18-0.5). Junior Gerard Brown was fourth in the men’s long jump with a mark of 6.85 meters (22-5.75).

Also for Auburn, senior Valentina Srsa was third in the weight throw (14.88 meters, 48-10) and junior Brittany Mattrella was fifth in the pole vault (3.36 meters, 11-0.25).

Friday’s competition also included the opening day of the multi-events, and after one day of competition in the heptathlon, senior Jager Livingston is in third place with 2,564 points, while freshman Christian Heiden is fifth with 2,303.

Competition at the Clemson Games will conclude today.

Men’s tennis heads to ITA Kick-Off Weekend
The No. 22 Auburn men’s tennis team heads to Tuscaloosa this weekend to compete in the ITA Kick-Off Weekend at the Alabama Varsity Tennis Stadium.

The nationally-ranked Tigers will face No. 18 Duke today at 1 p.m. and then take on either No. 23 Arizona or No. 25 Alabama on Sunday.

The No. 18 Duke Blue Devils (1-0) are coming off a 7-0 win over Elon last week. Duke did not give up a set to the Phoenix during the match.

The Blue Devils have a trio of athletes among the ITA rankings.

Henrique Cunha leads the squad and sits at No. 17 in the country, while Dylan Arnould is No. 62 and Torsten Wietoska is ranked No. 77 overall. Cunha and partner Reid Carleton stand at No. 8 in the national doubles rankings.

The Tigers competed in the three-day Hokie Challenge on the campus of Virginia Tech, Jan. 22-24, and had a successful start to the spring season. The Tigers took on Harvard, Virginia Tech and Indiana.

“Overall, I’m very pleased with the weekend,” head coach Eric Shore said. “The team competed well and we gained some experience for our younger guys. Our captain Tim Puetz had a great weekend going undefeated in both singles and doubles and has set a good example for rest of the team.

“There were a lot of positive things that came out this weekend, but we still have aspects to work on. However, I’m very encouraged for the future.”

No. 24 Tim Puetz, a junior from Usingen, Germany, competed in Flight A and came away with a 3-0 mark. He and doubles partner Alex Stamchev won doubles Flight A after the No. 6 pair in the country also finished 3-0.

The squad featured five freshmen, four of whom were making their first collegiate appearances. Andreas Mies was named Flight D champion after winning all three of his matches, while Alexander Sajonz won his flight and finished undefeated.

Freshmen Oliver Strecker and Tim Hewitt each went 2-1, while freshman Lucas Lopasso was 1-2 on the weekend.

Also competing for the Tigers was redshirt junior Nick Maurillo and junior Michel Monteiro. Maurillo went 1-2 on the weekend in singles play, while Monteiro and partner Sajonz finished 2-0 in doubles competition.