BIRMINGHAM, Ala. | The Gulf South Conference announced its 26th annual GSC Top Ten Award winners on Monday afternoon, and The University of Alabama in Huntsville was represented by Zach Hancock as the department's 24th student-athlete to earn the prestigious honor.
 
UAH has now had a GSC Top Ten Award winner in each of the past four academic years and nine in the last 10 seasons, as Hancock is the 13th male student-athlete to garner the honor in department history.
 
Hancock has established himself as the best thrower in UAH track & field history throughout his storied career with the program, as he has been named an Indoor All-American five times and an Outdoor All-American twice.
 
During the Chargers 2022 indoor season, Hancock achieved his fifth All-American award with a seventh-place finish in the shot put at Nationals with a toss of 18.00 meters. He was named 2022 GSC Indoor Field Athlete of the Year as well as the 2022 USTFCCCA Indoor South Region Field Athlete of the Year for his performances this season.
 
He continued to excel in the outdoor campaign, as he earned First Team All-GSC in the weight throw, shot put and discus and was named both the 2022 GSC Championships Most Outstanding Field Performer and Most Outstanding Overall Athlete.
 
He will compete at the 2022 NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships from May 26-28 in the shot put as well as the discus as he ranks fifth nationally in the shot put at 18.75 meters and the discus at 56.18 meters.
 
Amongst his career-best performances, Hancock holds the UAH program record in the indoor shot put (18.53 meters), indoor weight throw (19.67 meters), outdoor shot put (18.60 meters), outdoor discus (57.41 meters), and outdoor hammer throw (56.45 meters).
 
His bevy of success in the Gulf South Conference includes earning the GSC Championships Most Outstanding Field Athlete award twice in indoor (2020, 2021) and three times in outdoor (2018, 2021, 2022) competitions. During the regular season, he has been named the GSC Field Athlete of the Week a total of 22 times in his career, including seven as an indoor honoree and 15 in outdoor competition.
 
The GSC Top Ten Award winners are selected with the assistance of an advisory committee representing the Athletic Directors, Senior Woman Administrators, Sports Information Directors, Faculty Athletic Representatives, and Presidents from randomly selected GSC schools, which makes a recommendation to the Commissioner, who has the final decision.
 
The ten winners are now up for consideration for the GSC Commissioner's Trophy, which will be awarded to one male and one female, and will be announced Thursday, June 2 in Pensacola, Florida.