One Troy Today 3/4: That's Our Coach!

Cross Named Sun Belt Coach Of The Year

March 04, 2026

Good Morning, Troy Fam. There’s nothing better than seeing our Trojans making a difference in the community!

What all do we have stirring in today’s Brew? Check it out below!

👏 That’s Our Coach
🏀 Accolades Aplenty
🥎 Stingin’ ‘Em
⚔️ And much, much more!

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 That’s Our Coach. For the first time as a leader of the Troy men’s basketball, Scott Cross was named the Joe Gottfried Sun Belt Coach of the Year.

Cross guided Troy to a 20-11 overall record in his seventh season at the helm, capturing the league's regular-season crown with a 12-6 conference mark despite being picked to finish fourth in the preseason coaches' poll.

Cross has led the Trojans to five straight seasons of 20-plus wins and 10-plus Sun Belt victories, making Troy the only program in the conference to reach those win totals over that span. 

🔼 Stingin’ ‘Em. For the second consecutive season, the Troy softball team put a win over a Power Four opponent on the resume, using a huge six-run third inning to secure a 6-2 victory over Georgia Tech on Tuesday in Atlanta.

Kiley Huffman led the team with two RBIs, going 1-for-4 with a double in the contest. Makaley Boswell went 2-for-4, crushing an RBI double and reaching on a bunt single in the seventh.

A trio of Troy hurlers combined to hold the Yellow Jackets in check. Ella Cunningham started with three innings of one-run ball before Mya Holt fired 1.2 innings of her own. In a clutch situation late, Abby Lovell entered the game and worked 2.1 innings with three strikeouts to ice the game.

🔼 Power Pair. Joining Coach Cross in the postseason Sun Belt accolades are two first-time honorees with Thomas Dowd and Victor Valdes, who earned First Team and Third Team accolades, respectively.

Dowd averaged 14.6 points and 10.1 rebounds per game, and was the only player in the Sun Belt to average a double-double. His 16 double-doubles rank eighth nationally, while his 10.1 rebounds per game rank 13th in the country. 

The Trojans' leading scorer, Valdes averaged 15.0 points per game and led the team with 4.5 assists per contest. He recorded nine 20-point games this season.

🔼 Three Of A Kind. Even before heading to Pensacola for the 2026 Sun Belt Tournament, the Troy women’s hoops team is already piling up the accolades.

Zay Dyer leads the Trojans with a trio of Sun Belt awards, earning Defensive Player of the Year, All-Sun Belt First Team and All-Sun Belt Defensive Team. Fortuna Ngnawo followed on the second team and Emani Jenkins on the third team.

By earning Defensive Player of the Year, Dyer became the first Trojan to earn an individual award since 2020-21. She also became the first Trojan to earn three accolades for the SBC in program history, the first Defensive Player of the Year since 2018-19 and earned her second All-SBC First Team award.

Today’s Trojan Top Performance, brought to you by Conecuh Sausage, junior softball standout Makaley Boswell, who went 2-for-4 with an RBI and run scored in Troy’s 6-2 road win at Georgia Tech on Tuesday. Boswell has now reached base safely in all 19 games this season.

Trojans Top Performance is brought to you by Conecuh Sausage. Conecuh Sausage is made in Alabama, it’s great on the grill and a fan favorite for tailgating. Conecuh Sausage, the Official Sausage of Troy Athletics.

🤔 TROY TRIVIA

Coach Cross became the second Troy men’s hoops coach to earn Sun Belt Coach of the Year accolades.

Which other former Trojan leader earned the honor?

Got a guess?

Scroll to the bottom to find the answer!

*All times Central

Wednesday, March 4th
⚾️ Baseball at Vanderbilt @ 3pm

Friday, March 6th
🎾 Women’s Tennis vs. North Alabama @ 1pm
⚾️ Baseball vs. Maryland @ 6pm

Saturday, March 7th
🥎 Softball at Florida Gulf Coast @ 12pm
🥎 Softball at Florida Gulf Coast @ 2pm
⚾️ Baseball vs. Maryland @ 3:33pm

Sunday, March 8th
🥎 Softball at Florida Gulf Coast @ 10am
🎾 Men’s Tennis vs. Louisiana @ 10am
🎾 Women’s Tennis vs. Coastal Carolina @ 10am (Atlanta, Ga.)
⚾️ Baseball vs. Maryland @ 12pm
🏀 Women’s Basketball at Sun Belt Semifinals @ 2pm (Pensacola, Fla.)
🏀 Men’s Basketball at Sun Belt Semifinals @ 5pm (Pensacola, Fla.)

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🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: Don Maestri (2008-09)

⚔️ Have a great one, y’all!