HAYS, Kan. – The inaugural Tiger R.O.A.R. Awards were held on Tuesday night (Apr. 28) at Beach-Schmidt Auditorium inside of Sheridan Hall on the campus of Fort Hays State University. R.O.A.R. stands for Recognizing Outstanding Achievement and Resilience. The event was a celebration of the achievements of Tiger student-athletes for the 2025-26 year.
The celebration was highlighted by the announcement of Most Outstanding Athletes from all of Fort Hays State's 19 sports. SAAC Awards followed coaches sharing thoughts on their seasons along with their most-outstanding picks. To round out the ceremony, a number of special honors were awarded which included team community service award, team GPA, Play of the Year, Comeback Student-Athletes of the Year, Newcomers of the Year, Scholar-Athletes of the Year, and Student-Athletes of the Year.
Below are the 2025-26 recipients of the awards.
Most Outstanding
Baseball –
Cooper Howell
Men's Basketball –
Lucas Hammeke
Women's Basketball –
Brooke Loewe
Cheer –
Haley Schmidt
Men's Cross Country –
Christian Darrah
Women's Cross Country –
Emily Diercks McCullough
Men's Track and Field –
Drew Tolar
Women's Track and Field –
Annabeth Baalmann
Dance –
Jenna Gallegos
Football –
John Johnson
Men's Golf –
Cooper Scheck
Women's Golf –
Avery Blasi
Men's Soccer –
Tadhg Walsh
Women's Soccer –
Chelsea Bowen
Softball –
Hannah Green
Tennis –
Bethan Gill
Volleyball –
Caiya Stucky Reyes
Men's Wrestling –
Cason Lindsey
Women's Wrestling –
Isabella Renfro
Community Service Award – Softball
Highest Team GPA – Women's Basketball
Play of the Year – Softball (
Paige Thexton's pair of diving catches vs. Missouri Southern)
SAAC Officers
President –
Marcell Dely (Men's Wrestling)
Vice President –
Makenzie Hood (Women's Soccer)
Tresurer –
Jordan McCaslin (Men's Golf)
Secretary –
Marissa Porsch (Women's Wrestling)
Social Media & Marketing –
Reba Mader (Women's Track and Field)
Social Media & Marketing –
Peyton Shepard (Softball)
SAAC Awards
Tiger Award –
Laurel Cates (Dance)
Community Leader –
Alyna Chavez (Dance)
One Tiger Team –
Ashlyn Reeves (Volleyball)
Ryan Patterson (Men's Wrestling) was also recognized for being the MIAA SAAC Student-Athlete Mentor of the Year as a special presentation.
Special Yearly Awards
Men's Comeback Student-Athlete of the Year –
Cason Lindsey (Men's Wrestling)
Women's Comeback Student-Athlete of the Year –
Peyton Shepard (Softball)
Men's Newcomer of the Year –
Payton Roehrich (Men's Soccer)
Women's Newcomer of the Year –
Katie Linenberger (Women's Track and Field)
Men's Scholar-Athlete of the Year –
Cooper Scheck (Men's Golf)
Women's Scholar-Athlete of the Year –
Sydney Cotter (Women's Soccer)
Men's Student-Athlete of the Year –
Elias Ovelar Semeniuk (Men's Soccer)
Women's Student-Athlete of the Year –
Talexa Weeter (Women's Basketball)
