PENSACOLA, Fla. – Cooper Tendick has been selected as a recipient for the 2026 Gulf South Conference Top Ten Award presented by Caldwell Architects.The award recognizes the top female and top male student-athletes for their athletic, academic, and extracurricular achievements, during the 2025-26 academic year. One men's and women's sport student-athlete will also be awarded the Commissioner's Trophy, which is the conference's most prestigious individual honor and will be announced in-person at the GSC Awards Ceremony.

Tendick, a senior men's golf student-athlete has helped lead the Argos to another berth in the NCAA Division II National Championship. Last week Tendick won the NCAA South/Southeast Regional Tournament at 15-under par. He is currently the No. 3 ranked golfer in the country according to the Scoreboard Powered by clippd rankings. Outside of golf, Tendick is a member of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee.

The GSC Top Ten Award recipients are selected with the assistance of an advisory committee representing Athletics Directors, Senior Woman Administrators (SWA), Athletic Communication Directors, Faculty Athletic Representatives, and Presidents from randomly selected GSC schools, which makes a recommendation to the Commissioner, who has the final decision.

Honorees will be celebrated Thursday, May 28 in Pensacola, Fla., as part of the 2026 GSC Awards and Hall of Fame Ceremony presented by Caldwell Architects. The evening will be streamed at no charge, on the conference's YouTube channel.