The winners of the prestigious Big Ten Medal of Honor were women’s swimmer Amy Fulmer and men’s diver Lyle Yost.
The award, given to the most outstanding male and female senior student-athlete on each Big Ten campus each year, is awarded to the respective male and female student-athlete who has “attained the greatest proficiency in athletics and scholastic work.” Finalists are selected based on their outstanding accomplishments in the classroom, on the field, and as a leader and role model within their program.
There are seven finalists for the women’s award: Katelyn Abeln (pistol), Regan Alexander (women’s lacrosse), Leanne Bough (field hockey), Irina Cantos Siemers (women’s tennis), Jennifer Gardiner (women’s ice hockey), Amy Fulmer (women’s swimming) and Sam Hackenbracht (softball). For the men, the finalists are Donovan Hewitt (men’s gymnastics), Robert Cash (men’s tennis) and Lyle Yost (men’s diving). Read more on the finalists HERE.
A total of 811 student-athletes were named Ohio State Scholar-Athletes this year. The complete list of Ohio State Scholar-Athletes can be found below and in a PDF HERE.
The recipients of the inaugural Eugene D. Smith Award were Cody Simon of the football team and Gardiner from the women’s hockey program. The award was established in 2024 to honor and recognize Gene Smith for his commitment and dedication to the student-athletes he served for 19 years. Each team is encouraged to nominate one student-athlete who embodies the mission of The Eugene D. Smith Leadership Institute by exhibiting the highest level of character and leadership. The initial award recipients were selected by Sheila and Gene Smith.
Sarah Morbitzer, a member of the women’s volleyball program, was the recipient of the A.K. and Judith A. Pierce Phoenix Award, which is given to a student-athlete who has excelled in academics, athletics and personal growth attained through perseverance and hard work. The award is to be used to attend graduate or professional school at Ohio State, with preference given to someone who intends to enroll in the Fisher College of Business.
Rower Darby Pethrick received The John Dana Cole Award. The award, established in 1966 by a gift through the Development Fund from John D. Cole, provides a one-time stipend for post-graduate studies at Ohio State. The recipient of the scholarship is a student-athlete who shows the promise of success in his/her chosen field and has demonstrated academic achievement (3.00 GPA minimum).
Allison Smith of the softball team was the recipient of the Leann Grimes-Davidge Award. The Leann Grimes-Davidge Award, which is a tribute to Grimes-Davidge’s contributions to athletics at Ohio State, is given annually to a female athlete who reflects Grimes-Davidge’s outstanding qualities of athletic performance, scholarship, character, campus or community involvement and leadership. A member of the Ohio State women’s tennis team, Grimes-Davidge won four state and Big Ten titles. She graduated from Ohio State summa cum laude and received her master’s degree from Miami University where she served as the head women’s tennis coach.
Varsity O recognized teams for their academic performance. Softball won the most improved large team grade-point average, while men’s basketball had the most improved grade-point average among the teams with smaller rosters. The women’s hockey (large) and synchronized (artistic) swimming (small) teams were honored for posting the top team grade-point averages.
Katelyn Abeln of the pistol team and Cash from men’s tennis were honored with the Varsity O Alumni Society Bill Wentz Postgraduate Scholarship Award. The Varsity O award provides each scholar-athlete selected (one male/one female) with a one-time stipend of $4,000 for postgraduate studies at Ohio State. Winners are selected based not only on their academic and athletic success, but for their participation in community service, charitable works and non-athletics activities and organizations at Ohio State.
Abeln and women’s swimmer Morgan Kraus were the recipients of the M/I Homes Foundation Award, which has been presented annually since 1976. The award was one of the first designed specifically to recognize and promote women’s achievements in intercollegiate athletics at Ohio State. It provides an outstanding female scholar-athlete $5,000 for postgraduate studies at Ohio State. The award is based on demonstrated athletic and academic success as well as community contributions through involvement in civic or university organizations.
Six Buckeyes were selected for the Woody and Anne Hayes Award – Cash from men’s tennis, men’s gymnast Donovan Hewitt, women’s swimmer Alyssa Graves, men’s swimmer Jean-Pierre Khouzan, Morbitzer of the women’s volleyball team and Kiana Perez of the women’s lacrosse team. The award, established in 1979, provides one or more varsity athletes with financial assistance for postgraduate studies. The recipients of this scholarship are student-athletes who have demonstrated academic achievement (3.00 GPA minimum) and leadership qualities.
So far this academic year, 227 Buckeyes have been named to the Academic All-Big Ten team, with spring and at-large sports honors to be awarded later this spring. At autumn commencement, 56 current and former student-athletes received their degrees.
Click HERE to view the Scholar Athlete Awards Photo Gallery.
