The Ohio State University Department of Athletics recognized outstanding student-athletes with postgraduate scholarships and awards during the Scarlet and Graymies ceremony at the Covelli Center on April 14.
This annual event highlights the achievements of student-athletes who excel in academics, athletics, leadership, and community involvement. A total of 804 individuals were named Ohio State Scholar-Athletes this year.
Lena Hentschel from women’s diving and Bruce Thornton from men’s basketball received the Big Ten Medal of Honor, which is awarded to one male and one female senior student-athlete on each Big Ten campus for their excellence in both athletics and scholastic work. Both Hentschel and Thornton also earned the Eugene D. Smith Award, established in 2024 to honor Gene Smith’s commitment to supporting student-athletes over his 19-year tenure. The finalists for these honors included Jack Anthrop (tennis), Cullen Brown (lacrosse), Davis Burnside (hockey), Carson Kharchla (wrestling), Chance Gray (basketball), Kary Hollenbaugh (golf), Emma Peschel (ice hockey) and Tory Vetter (gymnastics).
Other notable awards included Jacob Harmon receiving the A.K. and Judith A. Pierce Phoenix Award for personal growth through perseverance; Kennedy Kay earning the John Dana Cole Award for academic achievement; Amani Kimball-McKavish being presented with the Leann Grimes-Davidge Award recognizing leadership among female athletes; Jessica Eden joining Harmon as recipients of Varsity O Postgraduate Scholarship Awards; Abby Thomas winning an M/I Homes Foundation Award alongside Eden; three Buckeyes—Brown, Sean Kaminski, Abbie Leverett—receiving Corwin A. Fergus Memorial Awards; while Makayla Carahaly, Leverett, Giovanni DeSantis, Johnathan Dorsten, and Solin Li were honored with Woody and Anne Hayes Awards.
The university supports its scholar-athletes through a range of facilities such as the Wexner Center for the Arts and Recreation and Physical Activity Center according to the official website. Ohio State competes in 36 varsity sports with numerous Big Ten championships as well as national titles according to the official website. Community engagement efforts include fundraising for pediatric cancer research along with global service trips according to the official website.
Ohio State operates six campuses statewide along with Extension offices in every county according to the official website, furthering its land-grant mission through affordable education, innovative research, athletics success—including producing national champions—and outreach across Ohio according to the official website.
