Youth is not wasted on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga's winter sports teams.
The Mocs completed a sweep of the Southern Conference freshman of the year honors for their winter sports Thursday, when UTC 149-pounder Tanner Smith was announced as the winner for wrestling.
Similar honors were announced Wednesday for Kevin Easley (men's basketball) and Tuesday for Eboni Williams (women's basketball). It's only the second time in league history a school has swept the winter honors, with UNC Greensboro doing so in 2005, according to a SoCon release.
Also announced Thursday were All-SoCon selections for wrestling, with UTC's Alonzo Allen and Chris Debien chosen. Allen is a senior 125-pounder from Conyers, Georgia, and Debien is a junior 141-pounder from Cleveland, Tennessee. Each is a No. 1 seed for Sunday's SoCon tournament at Appalachian State.
Smith, seeded third for the SoCon tourney, was joined in the SoCon's all-freshman lineup by teammates Drew Nicholson (165) and Ryan Resnick (157).
From New Carlisle, Ohio, Smith joined the Mocs after redshirting at Eastern Michigan. He is is 9-6 this season, including 4-2 in SoCon matches. According to a UTC release, he is the ninth Moc to be named SoCon freshman of the year, the most by one school since the league began the award in 1992. UNCG and Virginia Military Institute are second-best with five winners each.
"He does everything right, on and off the mat," UTC coach Kyle Ruschell said of Smith in a school release. "He has gone through two to three injuries over the last year and continues to do the things it takes to get healthy and stay competitive."
VMI's Neal Richards, a 174-pound redshirt junior, was named the SoCon wrestler of the year.
The award winners and standout teams were picked by the league's seven head coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own wrestlers.