NEW ALBANY, Ind. - IU Southeast Athletics held its annual Awards Banquet. A recap of the year, athletic and academic achievements were recognized, and awards were given out.
Awards for Male Athlete of the Year, Female Athlete of the Year, Team Spirit Award, Comeback Player of the Year, Newcomer of the Year, and Champion of Character were all given out.
The first award of the evening was the Newcomer of the Year Award, which is given to a first year Grenadier, whether it be a freshman or transfer, who contributed right away to their program. This year's Newcomer of the Year Award winner was Morgan Roberts of women's basketball.
The Comeback Player of the Year is given to a player who suffered an injury but fought through adversity and had an excellent season the following year. Kristen Semrow-Tanksley and Jennifer Pohlman of IUS Sports Medicine presented the award to volleyball's Allison Daves.
IU Southeast baseball won the Team Spirit Award after showing up at nearly every sporting event this year. The Grenadier baseball team's impact was not only felt at sporting events, but in the community as well. They were reading to the kids at elementary schools and being great ambassadors for their program and the school.
The next award given out was the Male Athlete of the Year Award. The award was given to Trent Hinkle of men's basketball for his impact on the court, in the classroom, and as a leader. Trent was First Team All-Conference and was crucial to the success of IU Southeast's run at the River States Conference tournament, which helped them clinch a berth in the 2026 NAIA Tournament.
The Female Athlete of the Year award follows the same criteria as the Male Athlete of the Year award. This year's Female Athlete of the Year award was given to Jesse Ledgerwood of IU Southeast women's basketball. Jesse earned First Team All-Conference honors and was named River States Conference Player of the Week twice.
IU Southeast honored the Chi Alpha Sigma academic inductees. To be inducted, a student-athlete must be a junior or senior in academic standing, must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.4 or higher, and must have earned a varsity letter in a sport sponsored by the NAIA. The newest Chi Alpha Sigma honorees can be seen below:
Emma Davis – Softball
Hallie Foley – Softball
Savannah Gaither – Softball
Coulter Hamilton - Baseball
Lillian Mackey – Softball
Grace Stapleton – Women's Basketball & Softball
McKenzie Walters – Softball
Linzie Wernert – Women's Basketball
IU Southeast also recognizes its Champions of Character with the Jim Morris Champions of Character Award. The award is named after former IU Southeast men's basketball coach and first athletic director Jim Morris for exemplifying strong moral character and sportsmanship. Brady Schuler from men's basketball was this year's award winner. All of the Champion of Character nominees for all sports were recognized as well, and they are listed below:
Volleyball – Lake Butiste
Men's Tennis - Vincent Sanders
Women's Tennis - Malory Coffman
Men's Golf - Westin Allen
Women's Golf - Emma Rowland
Women's Basketball – Taylor Turpin
Men's Basketball – Brady Schuler
Softball – Hallie Foley
Baseball - Konnor Scheidt
The award winners for Champion of Character, Male Athlete of the Year, Female Athlete of the Year will go up to Indianapolis, Ind., on May 7th for the first-ever IU Regional Athletic Banquet. Additionally, nominees for the Coach of the Year Award, Triple Threat Award, and Career Achievement Award will be going up to Indiananpolis as well.
