At the end of the spring semester, Winthrop’s sports team came to celebrate with each other in these exciting awards.
Omar Woods
Sports Editor
Photo via Instagram/@winthropovolleyball
Winthrop volleyball team gathers for a photo
Instead of being dressed in their usual Winthrop Eagles uniforms and athletic wear, Winthrop’s athletes could be seen in formal attire at the Wuspy’s, the annual Winthrop student-athlete award ceremony. This awards ceremony was hosted by the Winthrop University Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and took place in Richardson Ballroom.
The scene at Richardson Ballroom was one of professionalism and supportiveness. Each of the sports at Winthrop were seated at their respective tables with the exception of the Men’s Golf team as the team was currently at the Big South Championship in Fripp Island, S.C.
Before the event, the student population at Winthrop were able to vote for specific student-athletes in their award category. The award categories for the Wuspy’s this year were the male and female athlete of the year, male and female newcomer of the year, male and female Iron Eagle, comeback athlete, best performance, and the most supportive team.
Many student-athletes at the event were excited to celebrate the successes of their peers, especially the Lacrosse team who ended up winning the most supportive team award during the ceremony. Reese MacDiarmid, a lacrosse player, discussed what the ceremony meant not just to the lacrosse team, but also the athletics department as a whole.
“It just gives us a chance to all get together and be in one room to celebrate and support all of our athletes,” MacDiarmid said. “We love to talk to other teams and we love to go to other sporting events.”
Recognition for the hard work on and off the field was another reason why many student-athletes at Winthrop believed in the value of the Wuspy’s. Shane Keup, a baseball player, elaborated further on this sentiment.
“I think it’s just a celebration of the growth of athletics as a whole and highlighting some of the best athletes and best teams that we have here,” Keup said.
“I think just to get recognized is pretty cool.”
Madison Ruff, a women’s basketball player, shared the same sentiment as her fellow Winthrop Eagle athlete.
“I think the Wuspy’s means the completion of the year,” Ruff said.
“I think it means the celebration of what we have accomplished throughout the year and all the sweat and tears that we poured into a sport.”
Along with recognition for their hard work, student-athletes were also excited for the representation that the Wuspy’s gave to all of the sports at Winthrop. Kevin Brown, a track runner and the winner of the Iron Eagle award for this year’s Wuspy’s, elaborated further on this representation.
“If you look around, you have every person from every sport representation so I think it’s a really big thing,” Brown said. “Everybody’s dressed up and everybody came in ready and prepared. I think it’s a big thing for everybody. Chuck Rey does a great job of putting this thing on and making people care about it.”
The student-athletes all cheered and clapped seeing their peers be able to walk upon the stage and accept their much-earned awards. Giselle Little, a volleyball player, mentioned how this camaraderie between the sports teams was the most exciting part of the ceremony.
“The most exciting part is interacting with all the sports teams here and getting to celebrate everyone,” Little said.
“I think the Wuspy’s is an opportunity for the athletics to celebrate our hard work.”
