All-Time Eddleman Athletes of the Year | Female Finalists | Follow @IlliniAthletics

Meet the nine finalists for the 2016 University of Illinois Dike Eddleman Male Athlete of the Year Award. The group was honored at the annual All-Sports Celebration on April 25 at the Wyndham Garden Hotel in Urbana.

The Illinois Athlete of the Year Award is given annually by the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics (DIA) to the female and male student-athletes who have distinguished themselves in athletic achievement. In 1993, the award was named after Dwight "Dike" Eddleman, who is generally considered the greatest athlete in the history of Illinois athletics. Eddleman participated in basketball, football and track & field in 1943 and 1946-49, earning a combined 11 varsity letters in his career.

The winner will be voted on by Fighting Illini head coaches and a DIA awards committee and announced on Thursday, June 16, along with this year's female athlete of the year. The Illinois male and female Newcomer of the Year Award winners will be announced on Wednesday, June 15.

Dike Eddleman Male Athlete of the Year Finalists

Junior Cody Sedlock (Sherrard, Ill.), Baseball
Junior Malcolm Hill (Fairview Heights, Ill.), Basketball
Junior Dylan Lafond (Manchester, N.H.), Cross Country
Senior Clayton Fejedelem (Lemont, Ill.), Football
Senior Charlie Danielson (Osceola, Wis.), Golf
Sophomore Brandon Ngai (Sacramento, Calif.), Gymnastics
Sophomore Aleks Vukic (Sydney, Australia), Tennis
Sophomore Jonathan Wells (Fox Lake, Ill.), Track & Field
Sophomore Isaiah Martinez (Lemoore, Calif.), Wrestling

Finalist Bios

CODY SEDLOCK | Baseball • First-team All-American by Baseball America • Big Ten Pitcher of the Year and Unanimous All-Big Ten first team • First-round draft pick by the Baltimore Orioles (27th overall) • National Pitcher of the Week after 10.2 innings and Illinois Field-record 14 strikeouts vs. Ohio State (April 22) • Illinois single-season strikeout record holder (116), breaking John Ericks' 28-year record • Illinois Big Ten season strikeout record holder (75), breaking Marv Rotblatt's 68-year record • Illinois Big Ten season innings pitched record holder (64.2), breaking Drew Dickinson's 14-year record • Big Ten leader and ranked 13th in the nation in strikeouts during the regular season (116) • Only player in Big Ten to finish in the top five of innings (1st), strikeouts (1st), ERA (3rd) and opponent batting average (3rd) during conference games • Only pitcher in the country to throw into the 10th inning twice on the season

MALCOLM HILL | Basketball • First player in school history with 600 points, 200 rebounds and 100 assists in a season • USBWA first-team All-District V • NABC second-team All-District 7 • Second-team All-Big Ten (coaches and media) • One of 10 finalists for Jerry West Award (nation's top shooting guard) • Led Illini and ranked third in the Big Ten in scoring, averaging 18.1 points, the highest by an Illini in the last 13 seasons • Season total of 614 points rank sixth on UI all-time list • Scored in double figures in 31 of 34 games, with 16 games of 20+ points and four of 30+ points • Set career-high with 39 points at Penn State (March 6), the seventh-best single-game scoring performance in school history • Led team and ranked ninth in B1G in rebounding (6.6 rpg)

DYLAN LAFOND | Cross Country • First-team All-America honors after placing 29th at NCAA Championships • First Illini to earn All-America status in cross country since 2007  • Broke the Illinois 8K school record at the Big Ten Championships with a time of 23:22.4 • First-team All-Big Ten after placing 3rd overall at the Big Ten Championships • Led the cross country team to a Big Ten runner-up finish, the program's highest finish since 1989, and a Top-20 NCAA ranking • Second-team All-American during indoor track & field in the 5,000m run • Big Ten runner-up in the 3,000m run at the Indoor Championships • Set school records during the indoor season in both the 3,000m run and 5,000m run, breaking the 5,000m record that stood for 32 years • USTFCCCA All-Academic and Academic All-Big Ten honoree

CLAYTON FEJEDELEM | Football • Second-team All-Big Ten • 140 tackles (74 solo), 4.5 TFLs, 2 INT, 7 PBU, 1 FF, 1 TD • Big Ten's leading tackler, 23 ahead of 2nd place • Led Big Ten during conference games with 102 tackles, 16 more than 2nd place • Fifth in the nation in tackles per game (11.7) • 10th in the nation and second in the Big Ten in solo tackles (6.2 per game) • Most tackles in a season by an Illini since 2006 • Team Captain and voted team's Defensive MVP • 19 tackles vs. Wisconsin were 11th most by an FBS player in 2015 • Recovered blocked punt for TD vs. Middle Tennessee

CHARLIE DANIELSON | Golf • PING First-Team All-American, becoming the first Illini golfer ever to earn All-America honors in four consecutive seasons • Big Ten Golfer of the Year and first-team All-Big Ten selection • Set the Illinois single-season record with a 70.67 stroke average. • Ben Hogan Award and Byron Nelson Award Finalist • Finished T-8th at the 2016 NCAA Championships • Ranked as the No. 4 golfer in the nation by Golfweek • Won the Northern Trust Open Collegiate Showcase to earn a spot in his first PGA Tour event, the Northern Trust Open, where he made the cut (finished T-72nd) • Qualified for the 2016 U.S. Open • Earned the Les Bolstad Award for having the Big Ten's best stroke average during the regular season (70.70) • Finished among the top-5 in eight tournaments on the season, winning two event titles

BRANDON NGAI | Gymnastics • NCAA Pommel Horse National Champion • Youngest known NCAA Champion across any sport • 17 years, nine months and 27 days old when he won the title, • Third gymnast in Illini history to score a 15.600 or better on the pommel horse • All-American • Second-team All-Big Ten • Big Ten Pommel Horse runner-up • Won nine pommel horse titles on the season, tying the fifth-most on the event in a single season in program history • Never finished lower than third place on the season, including a "missed set" • Academic All-Big Ten

ALEKS VUKIC | Tennis • All-American • Advanced to the Quarterfinals of the NCAA Singles Championships, marking the seventh time an Illini has reached the quarters • No. 4 seed in NCAA Championships • Unanimous first-team All-Big Ten • Compiled a 25-5 overall record, including perfect 8-0 in Big Ten • No. 6 final national ranking in singles • 16-5 record vs. ranked opponents • 11-2 at No. 1 singles • 9-1 at No. 2 singles • Ranked No. 81 in doubles with Aron Hiltzik

JONATHAN WELLS | Track & Field • Indoor All-American in the high jump • Placed 8th at the NCAA Indoor Championships with a mark of 7'1.75" • Finished fourth at the Big Ten Indoor Championships, clearing 6'11" • Best jump came at the Husker Invite where he cleared 7'2.25" to win the event title • Placed 8th at the Big Ten Indoor Championships in the 60m hurdles • Redshirted during the Outdoor season

ISAIAH MARTINEZ | Wrestling • NCAA and Big Ten Champion at 157 pounds • Will represent Team USA at University World Championships in Turkey in October after winning national title (74kg) • Finished collegiate season with an overall record of 32-1 and 10-1 against ranked opponents   • Outstanding Wrestler of the Big Ten Championships  • Only the third Illini wrestler ever to win back-to-back national titles • Led NCAA Division I in wins by technical fall (14) for the second consecutive season   • 23 of 32 wins by major decision or greater • Led team with 83 dual point scored • 2015 Reno Tournament champion • 54 consecutive win streak to start his career at Illinois