HIGH POINT, N.C. — High Point University hosted its annual student-athlete awards ceremony, known as the
Pawscars, Monday night inside the Nido & Mariana Qubein Conference Center.
Men's soccer senior Holden Trent was named the HPU Male Athlete of the Year, while women's track and field junior Rachel Vesper was tabbed HPU Female Athlete of the Year.
Trent, who was drafted with the Philadelphia Union's first pick in the MLS SuperDraft, is currently playing professionally so teammate Davis Biggerstaff accepted the award on his behalf while a filmed thank you video from Trent played simultaneously.
The team captain anchored the HPU defense in goal, playing all 1,890 minutes of the Panthers' season while helping High Point to its first-ever men's NCAA Tournament win, a 2-0 shutout of North Carolina. In 2022, Trent also helped High Point to its fourth program win over a ranked opponent, a 2-1 victory at No. 7 Maryland on October 17. The reigning two-time Big South Goalkeeper of the Year earned First Team All-Conference honors for each of the three seasons he started in goal and league Defensive Player of the Week status seven times throughout his career.
Vesper went from a walk-on to a scholarship after an outstanding junior campaign. She became a First Team All-American during her first appearance at an NCAA Championship, finishing seventh in the pole vault with a mark of 4.35m. Vesper set a personal best at Virginia Tech with a mark of 4.36m to earn a spot at the national meet and finished third (4.21m) at the Big South Championships as HPU swept the podium in the pole vault. Lastly, Vesper was named the Big South women's field athlete of the week twice during the indoor season.
The Pawscars began with recognizing the 2022-23 4.0 Millis Scholar-Athlete Awards, which are awards endowed by the Millis Family to showcase HPU's outstanding student-athletes' academic achievements. Sixty-four student-athletes were awarded for their perfect 4.0 grade-point averages in the classroom.
Jefferson Amaya (men's soccer) took home HPU Freshman of the Year honors after registering five goals — with three being game winners — and four assists for 14 points.
The HPU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee voted Jenson Edwards (women's basketball) as the HPU Sportswoman of the Year, while Matt Lee (men's lacrosse) was selected as the HPU Sportsman of the Year.
Cael Chatham (baseball) was selected as the HPU Breakout Athlete of the Year. So far this season, the fifth-year transfer from LaGrange College leads the team with a .325 batting average, 36 runs scored, 50 hits while being second in runs batted in (32), doubles (11), and home runs (11).
The HPU strength and conditioning staff recognized four student-athletes for their excellence in the weight room. Hannah Hawkins (volleyball) was awarded the Female Iron Cub of the Year, while Beau Yantz (men's soccer) earned the Male Iron Cub of the Year. Mena Loescher (women's lacrosse) took home the Female Iron Panther of the Year award and Chris Van Niekerk (men's track & field) garnered the Male Iron Panther of the Year.
For their outstanding academics, Skyler Prillaman (women's soccer) was awarded the Tobias Scholar-Athlete Award while Noah Holmes (men's soccer) was voted the E. Vance Davis Scholar-Athlete award winner. Both will graduate with their Master of Business Administration in Business Analytics.
The game of the year was given to men's soccer for its massive 2-0 victory over North Carolina for the first-ever NCAA Tournament victory. Men's soccer was also awarded the competition cup, which is an NCAA champs/life skills contest that awards points to each team based on academic performance, student-athlete giving, outreach, leadership, supporting fellow athletes and athletic performance. The men's soccer team won the Big South Conference Tournament for the second time in three years with a 2-0 win over Campbell.
HPU Deputy Athletic Director Drew Sanchez was the emcee, while Athletic Director/Vice President Dan Hauser opened the ceremony with an overview of the department's outstanding accomplishments. Courtesy of the Panther Club, all seniors were presented with senior rings.
#GoHPU
2022-23 HPU PAWSCARS AWARDS & HONORS
Male Athlete of the Year
Holden Trent, Men's Soccer
Female Athlete of the Year
Rachel Vesper, Women's Indoor
Tobias Scholar-Athlete Award
Skyler Prillaman, Women's Soccer
E. Vance Davis Scholar-Athlete Award
Noah Holmes, Men's Soccer
Game of the Year
Men's Soccer 2-0 win over North Carolina in first-ever NCAA Tournament win
Freshman of the Year
Jefferson Amaya, Men's Soccer
Breakout Athlete of the Year
Cael Chatham, Baseball
Sportswoman of the Year
Jenson Edwards, Women's Basketball
Sportsman of the Year
Matt Lee, Men's Lacrosse
Iron Panther – Male
Chris Van Niekerk, Men's Outdoor Track & Field
Iron Panther – Female
Mena Loescher, Women's Lacrosse
Iron Cub – Male
Beau Yantz, Men's Soccer
Iron Cub – Female
Hannah Hawkins, Volleyball
Panther Cup Winners (Team MVPs)
Jack Van Overbeke, Men's Lacrosse
Holden Trent, Men's Soccer
Spencer Smucker, Men's XC
Kolt Byers, Men's Indoor
Chris Van Niekerk, Men's Outdoor
Abdoulaye Thiam, Men's Basketball
Gregor Meyer, Men's Golf
Brett Ahalt, Baseball
Sarah Kahn, Women's Golf
Taylor Suplee, Women's Lacrosse
Skyler Curran, Women's Basketball
Dylan Maberry, Women's Volleyball
Lindsey Ickes, Women's XC
Rachel Vesper, Women's Indoor
Sydney Horn, Women's Outdoor
Morgan Hairston, Women's Soccer
