April 22, 2009
CHICAGO- Fond farewells to seniors Josh Mayo and Scott VanderMeer and retiring associate head coach Mark Coomes, combined with a celebration of numerous accomplishments, made for a splendid night at the 2008-09 UIC men's basketball postseason awards banquet held at the UIC Pavilion on Tuesday, Apr. 21.
A cast of student-athletes, coaches, their families, University dignitaries, UIC Athletics and UIC Pavilion staff, sponsors and season ticket holders gathered to enjoy a fun-filled evening of recognition and reminiscing with a delectable meal catered by Connie's, a proud sponsor of UIC Athletics.
Adam Levinson, the voice of the Flames, served as the night's emcee and DJ, and special welcomes and words were provided by UIC Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Dr. Barbara Henley, UIC Director of Athletics Jim Schmidt and UIC head coach Jimmy Collins.
A special highlight package was viewed on the high-definition UIC Pavilion video board, and Collins was presented with a special basketball that commemorated his 200th career victory, which was achieved against Georgia Tech on Dec. 14, 2008.
Collins recognized the hard work and effort of his student-athletes and singled out Mayo and VanderMeer for their career contributions to the program.
"Those two won a lot of games for the Blue and Red," Collins said "We're going to miss them."
Collins then brought Coomes, who will officially retire from his associate head coaching duties at UIC on Apr. 30, up to the podium and gave his longtime friend an emotional sendoff.
Coomes, who has spent the past 13 seasons roaming the sideline with Collins, spoke about his time at UIC and the many friends he made on campus. Coomes thanked his fellow coaches, student-athletes and staff and talked about how many of his best basketball years have occurred at UIC.
The banquet wrapped up with a special awards ceremony that honored the team's top performers and statistical leaders.
Josh Mayo was named the team's Most Valuable Player for the second straight year, and Scott VanderMeer earned the squad's Defensive Player of the Year award once again.
UIC's Newcomer of the Year was Rob Eppinger, while VanderMeer, Robo Kreps and Spencer Stewart earned recognition as team statistical leaders in rebounding, shooting percentage and assists, respectively.
Two special honors were also given, as Jovan Ignjatovic earned his second straight Purple Heart award and Jimmy Harding was honored with the Ebenezer Noonoo Spirit Award. Senior team manager Lawrence Moore was also recognized for his contributions over the years.
