Shannon Aitken and Pair of Spartan Teams Grab Top Honors at Tampa Sports Club Banquet
TAMPA, Fla. - Shannon Aitken and her women's soccer team joined the UT baseball team as award winners at the 47th Annual Sports Club of Tampa Bay Awards Banquet. The event, which was held at Tampa's Higgins Hall and was televised on Catch 47, also included the induction of UT alum Tino Martinez in its Hall of Fame.
Aitken, the NCAA II National Player of the Year in women's soccer, nabbed the Outstanding Amateur Female Athlete Award while her team was named the Female Amateur Outstanding Team after capturing the 2007 NCAA II national championship. The title marked the first in program history, coming in its 10th year of existence.
The UT baseball team picked up its second consecutive Male Amateur Outstanding Team honor. The back-to-back national champions have now earned the award for their 2006 and 2007 NCAA II national titles as the program currently has five championships in its history.
Former University of Tampa baseball player Tino Martinez was also inducted into the Hall of Fame. Martinez went on to a highly successful major league career with most notably the New York Yankees. He is currently an assistant coach at the University of South Florida.