Former Longhorns 1B Ivan Melendez Named A Finalist for AAU James E. Sullivan Award
It may be November, with December rapidly approaching, but that isn't stopping former Texas Longhorns first baseman Ivan Melendez from being nominated for yet another award.
On Wednesday it was announced that Melendez was named a finalist for the AAU James E. Sullivan Award, which has been given annually since 1930 to the most outstanding athlete at the collegiate or Olympic level in the United States.
Should he win the award he would become the first Longhorn to do so in the award's storied history, and put him in the company of former winners such as Olympians Simone Biles and Carl Lewis.
One look at his stats and it is not surprising to see Melendez nominated for the award, as was the engine that made a historic Longhorns offense go. He slashed an absurd .387/.424./.863, while hitting an NCAA-record 32 home runs and leading the country with 94 RBIs.
His dominant season saw him take home a plethora of awards, with the most notable being the Golden Spikes Award, making him the first Longhorn to ever take home college baseball's most prestigious award.
Melendez joins Jocelyn Alo (Oklahoma Softball), Jordan Burroughs (USA Wrestling), Carissa Moore (USA Surfing) and Bryce Young (Alabama Football) as finalists for the award. This year's winner will be announced on Thursday, December 8, 2022.
You can find Connor Zimmerlee on Twitter @Connorjz98
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