Annie Alexander (The Herald/Submitted Photo)

Ellen Wortham (The Herald/Submitted Photo)

The Southeastern Conference announced its 2012 outdoor track & field awards on Friday afternoon, and Tennessee grabbed a pair of major honors and placed five student-athletes on the various all-star teams.

Senior Annie Alexander became the first-ever Lady Vol to be named SEC Outdoor Field Event Athlete of the Year. She earned the distinction after sweeping league outdoor titles in the discus throw and shot put for the third time in her career, recording marks of 186 feet, three inches and 56-3 3/4, respectively. With the most recent pair of victories, she tied the SEC record for most outdoor throws titles won by a woman with six. She also improved her career totals to 24 discus wins and 14 outdoor shot put victories during her career, including three shot triumphs and four discus first-place efforts in 2012.

For the fifth-straight season, a Lady Vol grabbed at least a share of the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award. After her teammate Chanelle Price earned a tie for the award in 2011, senior Ellen Wortham, who owns a 3.88 grade point average in psychology, was chosen as a co-winner in 2012. The recipient of an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, a three-time SEC Academic Honor Roll member and a three-time USTFCCCA All-Academic recipient, Wortham also is a 21-time scorer in league championship meets. She recently won her second-consecutive league 400m hurdles title, running a school-record time of 55.55, and added a fourth-place finish in the long jump and third-place effort with the 4x400m relay.

Alexander and Wortham also earned Outdoor All-SEC First Team distinction for the second-straight season. That honor goes to winners of events at the league championship meet, with Alexander taking the shot and discus, and Wortham claiming the 400m hurdles.

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