RUSTON – The 11th annual Techspy Awards were held Monday night inside the Thomas Assembly Center, an event that celebrates Louisiana Tech student-athletes and all their accomplishments in athletics, academics, and community service.
 
The year-end celebration, hosted by Gavin Kelly, featured an all-sports highlight video as well as 15 Techspy awards plus several other individual awards handed out to Bulldogs and Lady Techsters.
 
(Techspy award nominees include Spring sports from last season and Fall and Winter sports from this season.  Nominees for Performance of the Year are those that have taken place between April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025) 


 
Male Presidential Award presented by University President Dr. Jim Henderson
ZACH ZIMOS | FOOTBALL
Zimos spent two seasons on the gridiron with the Bulldogs, playing in 25 games with 17 starts at linebacker.  He finished with a team-best 84 tackles on the season this past season, earning All-CUSA Honorable Mention honors.  Having already graduated with his MBA, he was named Academic All-District, a Coach Wooden Citizenship Cub semifinalist, and Fall Spirit of Service Award winner in 2024.
 
Female Presidential Award presented by University President Dr. Jim Henderson
ROBYN LEE | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Lee spent five seasons on the hardwood for the Lady Techsters, playing in 150 career games including 68 starts.  She played and started in all 34 games as a fifth-year senior this past season.  She is a graduate student pursuing her MBA after graduating in Psychology last year.  She is a four-time CUSA Commissioner's Honor Roll recipient and a two-time CUSA Academic Medalist as well as being a two-time Academic All-District selection.
 
Gatorade Male Athlete of the Year presented by Dr. Dickie Crawford
ETHAN BATES | BASEBALL
Bates collected six All-America honors as well as earning Conference USA Player of the Year in 2024.  He started all 69 games for the Bulldogs, leading the team in both RBIs and doubles while batting .337 with 87 hits.  On the mound, he had a 3.43 ERA with a 2-1 record as well as 17 saves which led the country.
 
Gatorade Female Athlete of the Year presented by Dr. Dickie Crawford
OSARETIN JOY USENBOR | WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD
Usenbor opened the 2025 indoor season at the Rod McCravy Memorial Invitational, tying the program's 300-meter indoor record of 39.32.  She capped off the indoor slate by winning two golds at the Conference USA championship.  One of those was in the 400 meters with a time of 53.49.  The other was part of the 4x400-meter relay team that was the fifth-fastest time in program history at 3:37:63.
 
Male Performance of the Year presented by Boris Teske and Mike DiCarlo
SABASTIAN BRADLEY-REED | MEN'S TRACK AND FIELD
Bradley-Reed carried the torch in his 400-meter race, setting a new program record by nearly .7 seconds with a time of 46.74 to be crowned as the individual champion at the Conference USA Indoor Championships in Lynchburg, Virginia.
 
Female Performance of the Year presented by Boris Teske and Mike DiCarlo
ALLIE FLOYD | SOFTBALL
Floyd had a phenomenal performance in the circle against 17th-ranked Auburn, limiting the Tigers to just one run on one hit while setting a new career high with nine strikeouts in the 5-1 victory at the Rocket City Showcase.  She faced the minimum number of batters in five of the seven innings.
 
Male Newcomer of the Year presented by Elton Taylor
JIMMY HOLIDAY | FOOTBALL
Holiday, a transfer from WKU, earned Honorable Mention All-Conference USA honors after seeing action in all 13 games for the Bulldogs including six starts at wide receiver.  He finished the season with 658 all-purpose yards and six total touchdowns while ranking second on the team in both total receptions with 39 and receiving yards with 476.
 
Female Newcomer of the Year presented by Elton Taylor
RACHEL ONG | BOWLING
Ong, a transfer from Sam Houston, ranked in the top 15 in the country in split leave, spare conversion, and overall fill percentage.  She ranked third on the team with a 20.02 average per frame and had a 203.3 average during the individual portion of the tournaments.  She most recently secured an All-Tournament honors at the Music City Classic, finishing in second place.
 
Male Rookie of the Year presented by Cade Jordan
NIILO MAKI-PETAJA | GOLF
Maki-Petaja was named First Team All-Conference USA, CUSA Freshman of the Year, and Louisiana Freshman of the Year in his first season with the Bulldogs.  He had a team-best 72.25 stroke average over 36 rounds, fourth best in program history, while totaling 20 rounds at or under par.  He recorded four top five finishes in route to qualifying for the NCAA Regionals as an individual. 
 
Female Rookie of the Year presented by Cade Jordan
PARIS BRADLEY | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Bradley earned First Team All-Conference USA honors and was likely the unanimous choice for CUSA Freshman of the Year. The Lady Techster started all 34 games while leading the team in several categories including scoring at 14.4 points per game as well as total assists and steals with 102 and 46, respectively.
 
Team of the Year presented by Director of Athletics Ryan Ivey
BASEBALL
The Diamond 'Dogs posted a 45-19 overall record, the second most wins in program history.  They registered an 18-6 mark in league play, including a sweep of Liberty in the final series to earn the Conference USA regular season title.  They would end up advancing to the CUSA Tournament championship game then received an at-large bid to the NCAA Regionals.
 
Team Community Service Award winners presented by Lindsey McKaskle
FOOTBALL AND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
 
Community Service Award individual winners presented by Lindsey McKaskle
Women's Basketball – Isla Airey
Soccer – Annie Meador
Softball – Alannah Rogers
 
Team GPA Award winners presented by Dr. Donna Thomas
GOLF AND BOWLING
 
GPA Award individual winners presented by Dr. Donna Thomas
Baseball – Slade Netterville
Men's Basketball – Ben Ponder
Women's Basketball – Jianna Morris
Men's Cross Country – Trey Smith
Women's Cross Country – Lexa Thompson
Bowling – Jenna Stretch
Football – Judd Rouyea
Golf – Gray Kingrea
Soccer – Madita Ehrig
Softball – Allie Furr
Tennis – Zoie Epps
Men's Track and Field – William Estes
Women's Track and Field – Nia Wiley
Volleyball – Jailen Hurley
 
Tenets of Tech winners presented by Hannah Brotherton
Baseball – Michael Ballard
Men's Basketball – Will Allen
Women's Basketball – Robyn Lee
Men's Cross Country – Jacob Tabor
Women's Cross Country – Rebecca Quebedeaux
Bowling – Rachel Ong
Football – Landon Nelson
Golf – Joel Thomas Stephens
Soccer – Madison Pensom
Softball – Alyssa Martin
Tennis – Ana Rodrigues
Men's Track and Field – Sabastian Bradley-Reed
Women's Track and Field – Osaretin Joy Usenbor
Volleyball – Jailen Hurley
 
Iron Tech Award winners presented by Blake Talos
Baseball – Nate Crider
Men's Basketball – Will Allen
Women's Basketball – Robyn Lee
Men's Cross Country – Dillon Sanchez
Women's Cross Country – Bailey Springer
Bowling – Ashley Imhoff
Football – Landon Nelson
Golf – Gray Kingrea
Soccer – Maeva Costenaro
Softball – Elena Heng
Tennis – Zoie Epps
Men's Track and Field – DeMarko Lawler Jr.
Women's Track and Field – Osaretin Joy Usenbor
Volleyball – Carla Esquer