University of Tennessee Athletics
McGiffin Named 2022 SEC Women’s Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year
April 21, 2022 | Women's Tennis
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – In her final season on Rocky Top, Tenika McGiffin has been named the 2022 SEC women's tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the Southeastern Conference office announced Thursday.
McGiffin is the second Lady Volunteer in program history to earn the prestigious honor, joining two-time winner Blakeley Griffith who claimed the award in 2005 and 2007.
"I am incredibly proud of Tenika for winning this award," head coach Alison Ojeda said. "Former Lady Vols' athletic director Joan Cronan used to tell us "the only place 'athlete' comes before 'student' is in the dictionary." This couldn't be more true of how Tenika has managed and prioritized her studies while here at the University of Tennessee."
The award is annually given to a student-athlete who best displays excellence, both on the court and in the classroom. Recognition for the achievement is voted on by all coaches in the league.
"This award speaks volumes about how the coaches within our conference feel about Tenika," Ojeda continued. "They respect her success on the tennis court and in the classroom, while recognizing the tremendous sportsmanship she displays around opposing teams. I want to say to Tenika, thank you for all you continue to do to make the University of Tennessee a better place."
McGiffin, who graduated magna cum laude last year with a degree in Kinesiology, holds a perfect 4.0 GPA in graduate school and is pursuing her master's degree in Sport Management in the Department of Kinesiology, Recreation & Sport Studies. The Sport Management master's program was ranked the 16th-best program in the United States and 29th in the world by SportBusiness International.
Her performance on the court has been excellent this season as the Australia native earned the first singles ranking of her career and ascended to as high as No. 37 a few weeks ago. She is currently ranked No. 17 in the ITA doubles rankings, with Daria Kuczer. McGiffin possesses 11 ranked victories on the year, owning six in singles and five in doubles. Three of those victories have come against top-five foes, as she holds doubles wins over the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked pairs nationally and tallied a victory over the fifth-ranked singles player.
The co-captain of the Lady Volunteers is 17-11 in singles play and 17-13 in doubles this season. She has upped her career wins to 75 in singles and 71 in doubles, entering the SEC Championship.
Players Mentioned
