Greenville, N.C. – The American Athletic Conference Academic Affairs Committee has named former East Carolina University’s men’s tennis player Austin Allen the men’s recipient of the Commissioner’s Postgraduate Leadership Award. Allen is the second ECU student-athlete to be recognized with the scholarship and the first since Julien Dodu in 2015-16.

“The American Conference could not have picked a more deserving recipient for this award,” said men’s head tennis coach Shawn Heinchon. “Austin is a tireless hard worker that exemplifies discipline and excellence in everything he does. He will no doubt go on to do many great things in the future as he begins his journey to becoming a doctor. We all are very proud of him.”

The awards are given to one male and one female student-athlete from an American Athletic Conference-sponsored sport who have been admitted to a degree-granting or professional program for the following year and who have demonstrated leadership through excellence in academic credentials, athletic performance and depth of commitment to service within the institution or the community.

Allen will receive a $5,000 scholarship, which may be applied to postgraduate study.

Allen, who hails from Asheboro, finished his career with a 23-8 singles mark and a 13-6 doubles ledger. He finished his senior season by forming a successful partnership with Diogo Marques as the duo went 9-3 together. Allen’s best season on the singles court came in 2017-18 when he went 12=3 and helped the Pirates to a program-best 22-5 record.

Allen graduated from ECU with a degree in biochemistry and plans to study at the UNC School of Medicine starting in the fall of 2019. He was a four-time selection to the American’s All-Academic team and was named ECU’s Male Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2017-18, as well as winning the ECU Robert H. Wright Alumni Leadership Award in 2019. Allen also earned the Chemistry Undergraduate Research Experience Award in the fall of 2017 and the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Award in the spring of 2018. He was one of four selected for the East Carolina Heart Institute Internship program in 2018.

Along with his academic and athletic pursuits, Allen served in the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee for four years, including time as the President from 2017 through 2019. In total, he completed more than 260 hours of community service during his four years as a Pirate.