Stepp skyrockets to second SAC honor
February 6, 2018

Stepp skyrockets to second SAC honor

ROCK HILL, S.C. – The South Atlantic Conference has named Carson-Newman’s Tanner Stepp as the AstroTurf Field Athlete of the Week for the second time this indoor season, following his performance over the weekend at the ETSU Buccaneer Invitational on Saturday.

South Atlantic Conference Release

ROCK HILL, S.C. – The South Atlantic Conference has named Carson-Newman's Tanner Stepp as the AstroTurf Field Athlete of the Week for the second time this indoor season, following his performance over the weekend at the ETSU Buccaneer Invitational on Saturday.

The honor marks the fifth time this season that an Eagle has collected athlete of the week from the SAC, joining recent winner Jahvad McDermott and Tia Davis who has also been named to the award twice.

Stepp recorded a first-place finish in the high jump for the third time during the indoor season after clearing a height of 2.12 meters on his first attempt. The height now marks a new season-best for the 2017 All-American.

"It's great to win the award again," Stepp mentioned. "This is my last indoor season so I am hoping to go out on a good note."

The native of Jefferson City, Tenn. has now recorded the top finish in all three meets in which he has competed this season with wins also coming at the Bast-Cregger Invitational (2.08 meters) and the ETSU Invitational (2.11 meters).

With the jump over the weekend at 2.12 meters, the senior jumper ranks fourth in the nation in the event.

Following impressive showings from Devon Moore, Jahvad McDermott and Kieran Showler-Davis, the C-N men's team has jumped to No. 28 in the latest USTFCCCA National Rankings. The team started the year ranked 57th.

Stepp and the Eagles will now set their sights towards the inaugural SAC Indoor Championships on Feb. 19 in Winston Salem, N.C.

"The biggest thing for me going into the championships is being healthy," Stepp said. "With that being said, the next few weeks I'll be spending a lot of time in the athletic training room trying to get right so I can put in a great performance."

-CN-