NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt athletics’ 2022-23 season was highlighted by a third bowling national championship, continued success at a high level of competition and extraordinary developments by the Vandy United campaign.
Athletics
- In May, the Vandy United campaign entered the Dare to Grow phase after achieving its initial $300 million fundraising goal.
- In April, Vanderbilt announced an unprecedented philanthropic gift from Vanderbilt trustees Jennifer R. Frist and William R. Frist to support Vandy United and establish the Frist Athletics Village. The complex encompasses the entirety of the campus area currently housing Vanderbilt Athletics, including FirstBank Stadium, Memorial Gymnasium, Hawkins Field, the Lummis Family Tennis Center, the McGugin Center and the Ingram Center for Student-Athlete Success.
- On February 8, 2023, an official groundbreaking ceremony for the basketball operations center marked a major milestone in the Vandy United campaign.
- The Ingram Center for Student-Athlete Success was established in October to support student-athletes’ academic, personal and career development. It was funded with part of the lead gift to the Vandy United campaign by longtime supporter and Board of Trust member John R. Ingram.
- Vanderbilt University and FirstBank signed a 10-year football stadium naming rights and campus collaboration agreement.
- Renderings for renovations at Hawkins Field, the Vanderbilt Legends Club and the Vanderbilt tennis facilities were unveiled throughout the year.
Baseball
- The VandyBoys ended the season with a 42-20 (19-11) record, winning the SEC Tournament title for the fourth time in program history and the third under head coach Tim Corbin.
- Vanderbilt was named the No. 6 overall seed and host of the Nashville Regional for the 2023 NCAA Baseball Division I Championship. The 2023 regional marked the ninth time the program has hosted this event.
- Enrique Bradfield Jr. was honored as a Gold Glove winner for the second time in his collegiate career. He is the first Commodore to win this award twice. Bradfield earned NCBWA All-America and ABCA All-Region honors and was named to the All-SEC second team and SEC All-Defensive team. He became Vanderbilt’s all-time leading base stealer during the 2023 season.
- Nick Maldonado led the team with eight saves and held opposing hitters to a .135 average, allowing just five earned runs in 22 appearances. This season, he garnered NCBWA All-America and ABCA All-Region honors and was named second-team All-SEC.
- Carter Holton was selected to represent Team USA on the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team for the second season in a row. He was selected after the completion to the 2023 Collegiate National Team Training Camp, where he was joined by teammate Devin Futrell.
- Seven Commodores, highlighted by first-round pick Bradfield, were selected in the annual Major League Baseball Draft in July.
Men’s Basketball
- The men’s basketball team concluded the season with a 22-15 (11-7) record after advancing to the NIT quarterfinals for the second-consecutive year.
- Head coach Jerry Stackhouse was named Tennessee Sports Writers Association Coach of the Year, the Ben Job Award National Minority Coach of the Year and SEC Co-Coach of the Year. He was also inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.
- Vanderbilt’s 22 wins this season were the most for the program since winning 25 games in the 2010-11 season. The Commodores’ 14 home wins were their most since winning 15 during the 2014-15 season.
- Vandy advanced to the SEC Tournament semifinals for the first time since 2017, claiming victories over LSU and Kentucky along the way. Under Stackhouse, the team owns a 5-4 record at the SEC Tournament.
- Liam Robbins was named SEC Defensive Player of the Year and first-team All-SEC and earned spots on the U.S. Basketball Writers Association All-District Team, the SEC All-Defensive Team and the SEC Community Service Team. He was also named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District.
- Ezra Manjon earned recognition on the SEC All-Tournament Team, averaging 19.3 points and 4.3 assists per game in three tournament games. He scored a season-high 25 points in the Commodores’ win over Kentucky in the SEC quarterfinals.
Women’s Basketball
- Ciaja Harbison was named second-team All-SEC. She ranked second in the SEC in scoring average and assists per game and led the league in steals per contest. Harbison tied the school record for points in a single game with 41 in a win over Texas A&M. She was named to the Cancun Challenge All-Tournament Team after averaging 24 points, 5.5 assists and 4 rebounds per game.
- Marnelle Garraud represented Vanderbilt on the SEC Women’s Basketball Community Service Team.
- College Sports Communicators named Bella LaChance to its Academic All-District first team.
- Vanderbilt alumna Caroline Peck was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.
- Teresa Lawrence Phillips, Vanderbilt’s first Black female student-athlete and former assistant coach for the Commodores, was selected for induction into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame.
Bowling
- Vanderbilt overcame a 3-1 deficit to defeat Arkansas State and win the program’s third national championship. Overcoming an initial loss to the Red Wolves, the Commodores won matches against McKendree and Nebraska to advance to the final.
- The team was invited to the White House by President Joseph R. Biden to attend the College Athlete Day celebration alongside 46 other NCAA championship teams.
- At the NCAA Championship Banquet, Mabel Cummins was honored as the National Tenpin Coaches Association National Player of the Year and was named a first-team All-American. Head coach John Williamson was named the NTCA National Coach of the Year. Five other Commodores were honored at the banquet, including second-team All-American Caroline Thesier, third-team All-Americans Alyssa Ballard and Paige Peters and Victoria Varano who made the honorable mention list.
- Cummins was named the Southland Bowling League Bowler of the Year, leading the SBL in 21 stat categories at the time. Three-time newcomer of the month and November’s bowler of the month Ballard was recognized as the SBL Newcomer of the Year.
- Vandy won the Lansing Regional Championship for the second year in a row and the 10th time in the program’s 19 years of existence.
- Cummins, Amanda Naujokas and Thesier were named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District.
Men’s and Women’s Cross Country
- The men and women’s cross country teams were named USTFCCCA All-Academic. The men’s team boasted the highest grade point average among all Division I programs. Four cross country student-athletes, Max Beck, Joslin Blair, Caroline Eck and Philip Metcalf, were named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District.
- At the NCAA DI South Region Championships, Niki Narayani earned a 23rd-place finish and all-region recognition. The women’s team totaled 327 points to finish 10th overall, the team’s fifth top-10 finish of the season.
- The women’s team recorded a ninth-place finish at the SEC Championships with a score of 223 points. Cameron Fawcett paced the Commodores and finished 28th overall. Eck and Audrey Allman placed 39th and 40th. At the same meet, the men’s squad tallied 347 points to place 12th.
- To open the 2022 season, Narayani finished first overall and Fawcett finished second to help lead the women’s team to a first-place finish at the Belmont Opener. The men’s team finished second.
Men’s Golf
- The men’s golf team advanced to the NCAA Championship for the ninth possible consecutive season and 12th time in program history. The top-seeded Commodores were the runners-up at the SEC Championship and Auburn Regional and placed first in five invitationals during the regular season.
- Gordon Sargent received a special invitation to compete at the Masters Tournament, and he also made the cut at the U.S. Open before finishing as low amateur at the championship.
- Sargent was named GCAA first-team All-America for the second time in his career, first-team all-region, SEC Player of the Year, first-team all-conference and league player of the week on five different occasions.
- Sargent was named the Golfweek national Player of the Year and was a finalist for three other national Player of the Year awards.
- William Moll garnered third-team All-America honors. Matthew Riedel and Cole Sherwood were named to the honorable mention list.
- Sargent was selected to represent the United States at the 49th Walker Cup Match and at the 2023 Arnold Palmer Cup.
Women’s Golf
- The Commodores advanced to the NCAA Championship for the 12th time in program history and second consecutive season after placing third in the Westfield Regional.
- Vanderbilt placed first at the Ron Moore Invitational and FAU Paradise Invitational and recorded three additional top-three finishes.
- Celina Sattelkau was named a second-team All-American, recording five top-five finishes and seven top-10 placements during the season. She had a team-leading 71.2 stroke average and finished a team-leading 16 rounds under par.
- The SEC honored two-time Freshman of the Week Lynn Lim as its Freshman of the Year. Tillie Clagget was named to the All-Freshman Team, and Sattelkau was a first-team selection.
- Tess Davenport, Sattelkau, Virginie Ding, Clagget and Lim were named to the WCGA All-American Scholar Team.
- Jayna Choi was recognized as the Arthur Ashe Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year for women’s golf and was a first-team Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar. Ding and Ariel Yu were selected to the second team.
Football
- Head coach Clark Lea’s “Team 2” more than doubled the previous year’s win total and earned the program’s first SEC victory since 2019, first Power Five victory since 2018, first win over Florida since 2013 and first home victory over the Gators since 1998. Lea’s five wins were the second-highest win total of any second-year Vanderbilt coach since 1975.
- For the second consecutive season, Lea signed a recruiting class ranked in the top 40 nationally by Rivals and top 50 nationally by 247Sports. The class was ranked in the top 55 in the country by all four major services (247Sports, Rivals, ESPN and On3).
- Anfernee Orji was invited to attend the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine and signed a free agent contract with the New Orleans Saints.
- Wesley Schelling was named first-team All-SEC by the leagues’ coaches, Vanderbilt’s first such selection since 2016.
- Phil Steele named Orji second-team All-SEC. Will Sheppard and Jayden McGowan were third-team selections.
- Vandy boasted a 100 percent graduation rate in the latest data and earned the annual Academic Achievement Award from the American Football Coaches Association. This marked the fifth year that Vanderbilt achieved this award since its institution in 1981. Four football student-athletes were named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District, which is the most the team has ever had in a single season.
Lacrosse
- Vanderbilt lacrosse embarked on a weeklong international trip with stops in Prague, Czech Republic, and Berlin, Germany. The team had the opportunity to learn about the cities’ culture and history, visiting landmarks such as the National Museum, Old Jewish Cemetery, Terezín Fortress and the Berlin Wall. They also played an international friendly game with the Czech Republic National Team.
- Brianne Gross and Nancy Halleron were named All-American Athletic Conference second team.
- Paige Gunning became the all-time leader in saves at Vanderbilt with 504 career saves. She was named AAC Goalie of the Week for the week of March 13, 2023.
- Gross became Vanderbilt’s all-time leader in draw controls with 282 career draw controls. She was recognized as preseason All-AAC and earned an honorable mention spot on the preseason All-America team from ILWomen.
- College Sports Communicators named Gross Academic All-District.
- Jackie Nuckow and Sammy Nuchow were recognized as first-team Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars.
Soccer
- The Commodores concluded the season ranked No. 23 in the nation by TopDrawerSoccer with a 12-5-4 (5-3-2) record and reached double-digit wins for the fourth time in the last six seasons under head coach Darren Ambrose.
- The team entered the SEC Tournament as the No. 5 seed where they advanced to the semifinals and qualified for the program’s 12th NCAA Tournament. Vanderbilt defeated No. 25 Clemson in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to advance to the second round for the seventh time in program history.
- Raegan Kelley and Maya Antoine earned first-team All-SEC recognition, and Ella Shamburger earned second-team honors. Hannah McLaughlin was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team.
- Kelley led the Commodores in scoring with eight goals and 10 assists, earning All-Southeast Region recognition from United Soccer Coaches. Antoine and Shamburger also earned All-Southeast Region Selection.
- United Soccer Coaches recognized Kelley as second-team Scholar All-America. Tina Bruni was honored as a third-team Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar.
- After the conclusion of the spring semester, the women’s soccer team traveled across the world to Cape Town, South Africa, and London, England, on a two-weeklong international trip. The Commodores embarked on an overnight safari, participated in a community service event in Hout Bay, visited several historical sites and attended a Premier League soccer game.
Swimming
- Vanderbilt won five of 10 dual meets and had an overall record of 5-4-1.
- The swimming team took part in a two-week international trip to New Zealand, where they participated in a whale and dolphin safari tour in Aukland, a 20-kilometer hike across the Tongariro Alpine Crossing and visited several notable landmarks across the country.
- Over the course of the season, Vanderbilt swimmers reset six school records and recorded 21 marks ranking on the program’s all-time performer lists.
- Chantal Jordan was nominated for the Brad Davis SEC Community Service Award, a member of the SEC Community Service Team and was named a second-team Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar.
- Eleanor Beers, Jordan, Gabriela Pierobon Mays and Kailia Utley were named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District.
- Faith Knelson and Ellie Taliaferro advanced to the B Final in the 100 IM, and Utley finished in the top 10 in the 200 fly prelims at the CSCAA National Invitational Championship. Over the course of three days, the Commodores scored 109 points to finish 28th out of 58 schools at the meet.
Men’s Tennis
- After 18 seasons with Vanderbilt and 41 overall as an NCAA Division I head coach, Ian Duvenhage officially retired.
- Vanderbilt doubles pair Siim Troost and Jeremie Casabon, ranked 19th, advanced to the NCAA Men’s Doubles Championship.
- The team competed in the first-ever Universal Tennis National Invitational Tennis Championship where the Commodores entered as the top seed and advanced to the final match.
- Joubert Klopper was named the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men’s tennis and College Sports Communicators Academic All-District.
- The men’s tennis team earned the ITA All-Academic Team award, and the trio of Klopper, Connor Robb-Wilcox and Mitchell Deames were named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
- Nathan Cox was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team.
Women’s Tennis
- The women’s tennis team concluded the season with a 17-13 record after winning its first-round match at the Ohio State NCAA Regional. 2023 marked the 28th-consecutive year that the program has moved on to postseason play.
- Vanderbilt was ranked No. 2 in the ITA Ohio Valley Region year-end rankings. Five individuals were ranked in the top 20, highlighted by No. 1 Célia-Belle Mohr, and three doubles pairs earned spots in the top five.
- Mohr was named an ITA Singles All-American after ending the season ranked No. 19 in the nation and advancing to the round of 32 in the NCAA Singles Championship.
- The SEC placed Mohr on its all-conference first team and Bridget Stammel on its All-Freshman Team.
- Anna Ross, Holly Staff, Anessa Lee and Amy Stevens were named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District team.
- The women’s tennis team and seven individuals, Marcella Cruz, Dasha Kourkina, Ross, Lee, Staff, Stevens and Stammel received academic honors from the ITA. The team received the All-Academic Team award, and individuals were named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
Track and Field
- Over the course of the indoor and outdoor seasons, the team reset 14 school records and recorded 60 marks ranking on the program’s top 10 performer lists.
- Beatrice Juskeviciute and Brooke Overholt earned first-team All-America honors, and Veronica Fraley, Allyria McBride and Taiya Shelby earned second-team All-America honors at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Juskeviciute also earned first-team All-America recognition at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
- Fraley won the East Region and SEC titles in the discus and the East Region title in the shot put. She qualified for the World Athletics Championships in the discus as a member of Team USA for the second year in a row. She was undefeated in the discus for seven meets.
- Juskeviciute was the NCAA silver medalist and SEC champion in the heptathlon. She was also the SEC silver medalist and NCAA sixth-place finisher in the pentathlon.
- At the USATF U20 Outdoor Championships, hammer throw champion Giavonna Meeks, 400-meter hurdles runner-up McBride and 1,500 meters medalist Allman earned spots on Team USA for the 2023 Pan Am U20 Championships.
- The women’s track and field team, along with 11 individual student-athletes were named USTFCCCA All-Academic. Five track and field student-athletes with named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District.
Volleyball
- Vanderbilt announced the hiring of Anders Nelson as the reintroduced program’s first head coach. He most recently served as associate head coach at Kentucky for seven seasons where he helped mentor student-athletes who won the 2020 NCAA Championships and won at least a share of six conference titles.
- Russel Corbelli was named as assistant coach and defensive coordinator for Vandy volleyball. He was previously an assistant coach at Missouri, where he helped the Tigers advance to the rescheduled 2020 NCAA Tournament.
- The most recent addition to the Commodores’ coaching staff, Lauren Plum, was hired as an assistant coach and offensive coordinator. Plum began her coaching career at Villanova in 2020. She most recently served as a volunteer assistant coach at Notre Dame.
- In June, Vanderbilt volleyball began hosting its inaugural camps for players of all ages and skill levels.
