41 Savannah State Student-Athletes Receive Degrees

SAVANNAH, Ga.- Forty-one (41) current and former Savannah State University student-athletes received their degrees as part of the institution's spring commencement on Friday, May 9, recognizing spring graduates completing bachelor's and master's degree requirements.

The 41 student-athletes were among the nearly 400 SSU graduates in the university's 206th Commencement, which for the first time was held at EnMarket Arena in downtown Savannah.

The featured speaker was former SSU interim president Cynthia Robinson Alexander, J.D.

Kirk Smith, Tracy Todd, Jr. and Sadrea Mabrey earned their postgraduate degrees while 11 others earned their undergraduate degrees with honors with three graduating Summa Cum Laude, six graduating Magna Cum Laude and two graduating Cum Laude.

The new SSU alumni featured an All American, all conference players and conference champions.

Ayjay Plain, Qua King, Austin Lewis, Jerry Maxinaud and Xavier Wallace of the men's basketball team were a part of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championship team that received a automatic berth to the Division II Tournament. It was the second conference title for Plain, a HBCU All-American, and Austin who was also on the 2020-21 SIAC tournament championship team.

Jashiyah Jones and Ta'Quasia Lampkin of the women's basketball team were part of the 2021-22 team that started the season 14-0, setting a new school record for most consecutive wins to open a season and finishing at 27-3, which tied the school record for the most wins in program history with the 1977-78 team and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament.

Ethan Charles, Solomon Masters, Jaden Oden and Adonis Perez were members of the 2024 baseball team that received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II playoffs. Oden was named to the All-SIAC Second Team.

Kirk Smith, Christopher Murray and Kelvin Drummond were members of the 2021 football team that won eight games which matched the 1989, 1992 and 1994 teams for the most wins in a single season.

Nyzaveon Thompson was a member of the men's track & field team and won first place in the 60m hurdles at the 2025 SIAC Indoor Track & Field Championships, was named to the 2024 and 2025 NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field All-Region Team. Thompson took home a silver medal in the 2022 SIAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the 110m hurdles.

During her undergraduate years, Sadrea Mabrey was a First Team member of the SIAC track & field all conference team in the triple jump in 2022 and 2023. Mabrey won first place at the conference meet in 2023 in the long jump and the triple jump.

Eight members of the football team as well as a team manager received their degrees while women's track & field and the baseball team had six followed by men's basketball with five and volleyball and women's basketball with four each, men's track & field, tennis and softball had two each while men's golf had apiece.

FOOTBALL
Kirk Smith- Master of Business Administration
Tracy Todd Jr.- Master of Business Administration
Zaire Anderson- Management
Christopher Murray- Management
Kelvin Drummond- Homeland Security And Emergency Management
Julius Gomes- Homeland Security And Emergency Management
Clarence Samuel III- Mechanical Engineering Technology
Ameer Phillips- Associate of Science***
Tacidy Willie- Behavior Analysis (Student Manager)

WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD
Sadrea Mabry- Master of Public Administration
Lynda Miller- Social Work**
Jeainna Bryant- Associate of Arts
Kin'ya Jackson- Civil Engineering Technology
Sarah Ross- Electronics Engineering Technology
Olivia Hill- Associate of Science

BASEBALL
Ethan Charles- Marketing
Demetrius Lovejoy Jr.- Management
Adonis Perez- Sociology
Solomon Masters- Biology**
Jaden Oden- Civil Engineering Technology
Hassan Goggins- Biology**

MEN'S BASKETBALL
Qua King- Interdisciplinary Studies**
Ayjay Plain- Interdisciplinary Studies
Austin Lewis- Mass Communications*
Xavier Wallace- Mass Communications
Jerry Maxinaud- Associate of Arts

VOLLEYBALL
Caylen Samuel- English Language and Literature
Shaela-Ashley Pierre- Visual and Performing Arts**
Amariah Wynne- Sociology
Jaeda Austin- Biology

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Jashiyah Jones- Accounting
Ta'Quasia Lampkim- Mass Communications
Anaiya Donaldson- Criminal Justice
Mya Byrd- Sociology*

MEN'S TRACK & FIELD
Matthew Hill- Management
Nyzaveon Thompson- Biology

TENNIS
Sunzahra Liburd Banks- Mass Communications***
Yanna Cunningham- Sociology

SOFTBALL
Kayla McDuffie- Biology**
Shaylin Jones- Management

MEN'S GOLF
Mark Greene II- Marketing***

*** Summa Cum Laude
** Magna Cum Laude
* Cum Laude

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Players Mentioned

Austin Lewis: Freshman

Mark Greene: Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Austin Lewis
: Freshman

Mark Greene
: Sophomore