JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Mar. 5, 2025) – The lights got brighter in Freedom Hall in February, but the stars were out all season long.
Quimari Peterson was named the 2025 Malcolm U. Pitt SoCon Player of the Year on Wednesday, announced by the Southern Conference offices in Spartanburg, South Carolina. In addition to Peterson’s award, Karon Boyd was named SoCon Defensive Player of the Year. Peterson and Jaden Seymour received first team All-SoCon honors, while Boyd was named to the SoCon All-Defensive Team in addition to his individual award.
Peterson, a senior from Gary, Indiana, currently ranks 15th in the nation in total points (603), 28th in points per game (19.5), 15th in made field goals (219), 12th in three-point field goal percentage (43.1), 29th in steals (62), and 40th in steals per game (2.00), leading the SoCon in all seven categories. Peterson was the league’s leading scorer in conference play by a decisive margin, scoring 20.0 points per game against SoCon opponents, nearly two full points per game more than the next-closest player. Peterson is the tenth Buccaneer to score 600 points in a season and the first since T.J. Cromer in 2017, becoming the seventh Buccaneer to score 1,000 points in his first two seasons with the program in the process.
Boyd, born in Queens, New York, before growing up in Concord, North Carolina, was one of the top rebounders in the SoCon, finishing top five in the SoCon in all rebounding categories in both overall and conference-only games. In SoCon games, Boyd was one of four players in the league who averaged at least one steal and one blocked shot per game. Boyd is the first Defensive Player of the Year in ETSU’s history.
Seymour, a senior from Charlotte, North Carolina, finished the season as the seventh-leading scorer, sixth-leading rebounder, and third-leading shot blocker in the conference. Seymour joins Boyd as one of four players with at least one blocked shot and one steal per game in SoCon play and is the only SoCon player to record a triple-double this season, with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists against VMI on January 1. He also set Freedom Hall’s single-game scoring record this season with 34 points against Western Carolina on January 22.
The full list of award winners is as follows:
Malcolm U. Pitt Player of the Year
Quimari Peterson, Sr., G, ETSU
Newcomer of the Year
Frank Champion, Sr., F, Chattanooga
Sixth Man of the Year
Josh Holloway, So., G, Samford
Defensive Player of the Year
Karon Boyd, Jr., F, ETSU
Anton Foy Coach of the Year
Dan Earl, Chattanooga
First team
Quimari Peterson, Sr., G, ETSU
Jaden Seymour, Sr., F/C, ETSU
PJay Smith Jr., Sr., G, Furman
Kenyon Giles, Jr., G, UNCG
Honor Huff, Jr., G, Chattanooga
Second team
Rylan Jones, Gr., G, Samford
Trey Bonham, Sr., G, Chattanooga
Bash Wieland, Gr., G, Chattanooga
Frank Champion, Gr., F, Chattanooga
Corey Tripp, Sr., G, Wofford
Third team
Nick Anderson, Gr., G, Furman
Donovan Atwell, Jr., G, UNCG
Trey Fort, Sr., G, Samford
Rickey Bradley Jr., Jr., G, VMI
Kyler Filewich, Sr., C, Wofford
All-Defensive team
Karon Boyd, Jr., F, ETSU
Cooper Bowser, So., F, Furman
Josh Holloway, So., G, Samford
AJ Clark, So., G, VMI
Justin Bailey, Jr., G, Wofford
ETSU begins its 2025 SoCon Men’s Basketball Championship run on Saturday against Wofford in the 3/6 matchup, scheduled for a 6:00 p.m. tipoff. Single-session tickets are available at ETSUTickets.com.
