June 14, 2012

HATTIESBURG, Miss. - After winning a national title in the women's triple jump, Southern Miss' Ganna Demydova was named Conference USA Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year, as voted on by the league's head coaches.

Demydova won the 2012 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field triple jump title with a meet-record performance of 14.20-meters (46-7.25), earning her First Team USTFCCCA All-America honors. The Ukraine native also captured the NCAA East Preliminary triple jump crown with a leap of 13.99m (45-10.75). The Southern Miss graduate left the C-USA Outdoor Championship with a gold medal and conference record leap of 14.03m (46-0.25) in the same event. At the end of the league championship, she was honored with the Co-Female Performance of the Meet award along with teammate Tori Bowie who also bettered the conference record with a first-place mark of 6.78m (22-3) in the long jump. Demydova owns the school, conference and national record in the triple jump.

UCF freshman Octavious Freeman was selected as the 2012 C-USA Female Track Athlete of the Year.

On the men's side, East Carolina's Dennis Aliotta was named the Male Field Athlete of the Year while Tulsa's Carl Stones and Houston's Errol Nolan were voted C-USA Track Co-Athletes of the Year.

This is the fifth year Conference USA has awarded a Female and Male Track Athlete of the Year and Field Athlete of the Year.

Women C-USA Track Athletes of the Year
2012 Octavious Freeman, UCF
2011 Jackie Coward, UCF
2010 Blessing Okagbare, UTEP
2009 Seun Adigun, Houston

C-USA Field Athletes of the Year
2012 Ganna Demydova, Southern Miss
2011 Tori Bowie, Southern Miss
2010 Blessing Okagbare, UTEP
2009 Simone du Toit, SMU

C-USA All-Time Athlete of the Year
2008 Susan King, Memphis
2007 Ebonie Floyd, Houston
2006 Ebonie Floyd, Houston
2005 Chandra Brewer, South Florida
2004 Dayana Octavien, South Florida
2003 Dayana Octavien, South Florida
2002 Brianna Dahm, Marquette
2001 Kerine Black. South Florida
2000 Hanne Lyngstad, Tulane
1999 Maria Otto, South Florida
1998 Hanne Lyngstad, Tulane
1997 Jenny Adams, Houston
1996 Amy Erickson, Marquette

Men C-USA Track Athlete of the Year
2012 Carl Stones, Tulsa and Errol Nolan, Houston
2011 Richard Lowe, Memphis
2010 John Beattie, Tulsa
2009 John Beattie, Tulsa

C-USA Field Athlete of the Year
2012 Dennis Aliotta, East Carolina
2011 Chris Carter, Houston
2010 Steffen Nerdal, Memphis
2009 Dimitrios Fylladitakis, UTEP

C-USA All-Time Male Athlete of the Year
2008 Mickael Hanany, UTEP
2007 Pablo Solares, Rice
2006 Mircea Bogdan, UTEP
2005 Carey LaCour, Houston
2004 Gaute Myklebust, Memphis and David Payne, Cincinnati
2003 Gaute Myklebust, Memphis
2002 Michael Frater, TCU
2001 Solomon Kandie, Tulane
2000 Solomon Kandie, Tulane
1999 Anthony Authorlee, Houston
1998 Llewellyn Bredwood, South Florida
1997 John Davis, Houston