CLARKSVILLE—For the third consecutive spring, Austin Peay State University student-athletes turned out for the ESPEAY's, which went down Thursday night in the Dunn Center in honor of the best and brightest Austin Peay had to offer in 2018-19.

Master of Ceremonies Christian Christenson did an excellent job in his second year as host, and the night was filled with outstanding nominees and moments celebrating another exceptional year. The top individual prizes belonged to Parker Phillips, Lidia Yanes Garcia, Terry Taylor and Morgan Rackel as the Legends Award winners and Most Outstanding Male and Female Athlete.

Rackel's tale as Most Outstanding Female Athlete is still being written, but the opening chapters for 2019 have been nothing short of spectacular. As of Thursday night, the senior was 18-5 with a 2.11 ERA and 181 strikeouts in 152.2 innings pitched, during which opponents hit just .228 against her, which by itself would be cause for celebration. That's she's also hitting .290 with nine home runs and 31 RBI as one of the lineup's top threats is just unfair to opponents—particularly OVC opponents, against whom she's raised her game both in the circle (7-0, 1.49 ERA, .182 opponent average and an astounding 13-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio) and at the dish (slashing .342/.651/.396 with four homers and a team-high 14 RBI).

Rackel's 181 strikeouts leads the Ohio Valley Conference and ranks 26th nationally; she's also among the nation's leaders in strikeouts per seven innings (8.3, 43rd), wins (18, 22nd) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.70, seventh). With a couple of weeks remaining in the regular season, the Calgary native has already been named OVC Pitcher of the Week twice and Player of the Week once, just the third player in program history to earn Pitcher and Player of the Week honors during her career as a two-way threat.

This season, Rackel has tossed five complete-game shutouts, including a no-hitter against Jackson State, and had multi-homer games against Jacksonville and Belmont. But her most impressive performance—possibly the most impressive in Austin Peay history—was a 16-inning complete game win against McNeese State on Feb. 23. Rackel scattered 13 hits and one run over the course of 217 pitches, striking out a career-high 16 in the eventual win.

Her counterpart as Most Outstanding Male Athlete is Taylor, an exceptional talent who still somehow managed to up his game as a sophomore. He became just the second sophomore in program history to average 20 points per game, finishing at 20.5 ppg and 8.9 rpg on 53.1 percent shooting from the floor. Taylor's rise up the record book allowed him to easily eclipse the 1,000-point mark in just two seasons on campus, making him part of a select group of six Governors who needed just two seasons in red-and-white to hit that milestone. Among his contemporaries, Taylor is one of 17 Division I sophomores to already have reached 1,000 career points—he ranks second on that list with 1,205 points, behind only Howard's RJ Cole. 

The Bowling Green native is one of two players in Austin Peay history with 250 boards in each of his first two seasons. He finished his sophomore campaign with 294 rebounds, seventh-most all-time, and already ranks 16th in career rebounds by a Gov with 585. Over the last two seasons, he's one of just 48 Division I players with 500 or more total rebounds, and one of only 13 to haul in 200 offensive boards during that time.

For the second year in a row, Taylor earned All-OVC and NABC All-District honors. He was selected for All-Tournament honors for the island portion of the Jersey Mike's Jamaica Classic and earned MVP honors at the St. Pete Shootout, leading the Govs to the title with wins against Campbell and Liberty. In February, his 42 points at Morehead State were the most by an OVC player in 2018-19 and most by a Gov since 2008, making him one of only 21 players in program history with a 40-point game.

Parker Phillips' legend has grown every year since arriving on campus, so it's only fitting that he receive the Male Legends honor. As a redshirt freshman, he broke the single-season home run mark by an Austin Peay freshman which had stood for 20 years and has been destroying all power records since. He took over the career home run lead earlier this spring and became the first player in program history with 40 career homers thanks to his blast against Evansville, April 9. It's not just power in Phillips' game either; he's been hit by a program-record 51 pitches during his career, showcasing his willingness to take one for the team.

The Collierville native has filled a trophy case with honors and accolades during his career, earning Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American and NCBWA Freshman All-American honors during his first season and All-OVC accolades in 2018 after leading the OVC in home runs and tying Nate Manning's single-season program record with 19 big flies. He represented Austin Peay on the national stage last summer, showcasing his power at TD Ameritrade Ballpark at the Collegiate Home Run Derby and followed that with a trip to play in the prestigious Cape Cod League over the summer.

This season, Phillips has continued to rake, highlighted by a three-homer game against Northern Illinois in February and a two-homer, five-RBI outing in the series finale against Southeast Missouri, March 24. With 14 home runs, he's become the first player in program history with three double-digit home run seasons; he ranks second in the OVC in home runs, second in slugging percentage (.628) and third in RBI (41).

A wealth of talent on the women's side posed a vexing task for the selection committee for this year's Female Legends Award honor, but Lidia Yanes Garcia's career simply stood out. The Los Realejos, Spain native has been practically untouchable for the duration of her Austin Peay career; her next singles victory would be her 100th as a Gov, an unfathomable number befitting the only three-time OVC Women's Tennis Player of the Year in league history.

As talented as she is on the court, she matches it with brilliance away from it. A computer science major, Yanes Garcia has posted a 4.0 cumulative grade-point average, earning a bevy of academic honors including two Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Scholar-Athlete honors, a spot as a semifinalist for the 2018 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sport Scholar Award, Google Cloud Academic All-America® honors in 2018 and the OVC Academic Medal of Honor on three occasions. Last May, she was recognized as the Ohio Valley Region's ITA Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship winner, which recognizes athletes for their pursuit of excellence on and off the court, in all aspects of the game, and in October she earned distinction as one of six recipients of the OVC's Scholar-Athlete Award, the highest individual honor that can be earned by OVC student-athletes and is given annually to three men and three women for their accomplishments in both the classroom and athletic arena and because of their leadership abilities.

Yanes Garcia hasn't let up a bit on the court as a senior, helping pace the Govs to a 20-0 regular season record and regular season OVC Championship, along with a bye as the top seed in the OVC Tennis Championships this week in Nashville. She's an astounding 27-4 this year in singles and has won 11 consecutive matches entering the weekend, while posting a 10-0 mark alongside twin sister Claudia at No. 2 doubles.

Thanks in no small part to Yanes Garcia's performance on and off the court this year, as well as winning Team of the Year and Coach of the Year honors, women's tennis took home the coveted AP Govs Cup, for their combination of athletic and academic achievement, community service and attendance at Austin Peay sporting events. Overall, no singular program dominated the proceedings, with multiple representatives from women's tennis, track and field, men's basketball, softball and baseball earning some of the night's biggest honors.

On the academic side, Kristen Stucker (volleyball) and Alex Vegh (men's golf) were honored as Male and Female Scholar-Athlete, while senior Nia Gibbs-Francis (track and field) earned the Perkins Freeman Academic Achievement honor and Emily Moore (softball) earned the Perkins Freeman Scholarship. Gibbs-Francis' teammate Jackie Verseman earned the Govs Spirit honor, while men's basketball took the Community Spirit honor for their work in the community.

A complete list of nominees can be found below (winners in BOLD)

Female Athlete of the Year: Claudia Yanes Garcia (women's tennis), Morgan Rackel (softball), Kristen Stucker (volleyball)

Male Athlete of the Year: Terry Taylor (men's basketball), Jacques Pucheu (baseball), Chase Korte (men's golf)

Female Rookie of the Year: Taylor Dedmen (women's golf), Kyra Wilder (track and field), Danielle Morris (women's tennis)

Male Rookie of the Year: Garrett Spain (baseball), Micah Knisley (men's golf), Antwuan Butler (men's basketball)

Team of the Year: Volleyball, Men's Basketball, Women's Tennis

Coach of the Year: Taylor Mott (volleyball), Matt Figger (men's basketball), Maria Sorbello (tennis)

Game of the Year: Baseball (defeating No. 1 Vanderbilt), Softball (16-inning win against McNeese State), Volleyball (win against SEC foe Ole Miss)

Moment of the Year: Men's Basketball (Zach Glotta's Senior Night three-point barrage), Baseball (Matt Joslin's walk-off grand slam against Southern Illinois), Football (hosting Gold Star Families on Military Appreciation Day)

Female Breakout Athlete of the Year: Tatiana Lopez (women's tennis), Kelsey Gross (softball), Arielle Gonzalez-Varner (women's basketball)

Male Breakout Athlete of the Year: Steve Harris (men's basketball), DJ Montgomery (football), David Martinez (baseball)

Govs Spirit Award: Jackie Verseman (track and field)

Community Champion: Men's Basketball

Staff Member of the Year: Katie Ethridge, Academic Services

Female Scholar Athlete: Kristen Stucker (volleyball)

Male Scholar Athlete: Alex Vegh (men's golf)

Perkins Freeman Academic Achievement Award: Nia Gibbs-Francis (track and field)

Perkins Freeman Academic Achievement Scholarship: Emily Moore (softball)

Team Academic Awards: Max Remy (baseball), Nieja Crawford (women's basketball), Zach Glotta (men's basketball), Kylie Simerly (cheer), Emmaculate Kiplagat (women's cross country), Hezron Kiptoo (men's cross country), Kimberly Cunningham (dance), Ryan Rockensuess (football), Ashton Goodley (women's golf), Alex Vegh (men's golf), Nia Gibbs-Francis (track and field), McKenzie Dixon (soccer), Emily Moore (softball), Lidia Yanes Garcia and Claudia Yanes Garcia (women's tennis), Almantas Ozelis (men's tennis), Cori Theiss (beach volleyball), Kristen Stucker (indoor volleyball)

Female Legends: Lidia Yanes Garcia (women's tennis)

Male Legends: Parker Phillips (baseball)

Donor of the Year: James and Betty Corlew