EASTON, Pa. - Eighteen student-athletes from 10 different teams received laurels at the 2026 Honors Convocation for their academic success. The ceremony was held on May 3 in the Colton Chapel with remarks by Tim Laquintano and Lafayette College's President, Nicole Farmer Hurd. Caroline Lang Thompson '13 served as the guest speaker.

Lena Thedrian (field hockey) received the James F. Bryant '40 Excellence Award, given to a junior who meets standards of excellence within the classroom, their sport and the community.

Paraskevi Briegel (women's tennis) was one of two winners of the Lafayette Alumni of the Lehigh Valley Scholarship Award, doled out to seniors who either reside in the greater Lehigh Valley or have graduated from a greater Lehigh Valley high school and have shown outstanding academic achievement. Briegel later earned the J. H. Tarbell Award for demonstrating an understanding of financial operations and institutions.

Emma Shields of women's basketball was selected by department faculty for the Carolyn Byington '15 Award for Global Citizenship, presented to a senior Anthropology & Sociology major for outstanding service and scholarship aimed at enhancing transnational and intercultural understanding.

The American Institute of Chemical Engineers Donald F. Othmer Award was given men's tennis junior Derrin Lerner for majoring in chemical and biomolecular engineering who has attained the highest grade-point average after the first two years of study.

Titan Casey (track and field) took home the Carl J. Staska Prize, for a student who has demonstrated a high degree of proficiency in chemical laboratory skills.

The Luther F. Witmer Prize Awarded went to senior Alexa LaSasso (track and field) for the most outstanding accomplishments in materials science and engineering. Katherine Pappas of track and field claimed the American Chemical Society Prize, given by the Lehigh Valley Section of the American Chemical Society, to an outstanding senior for achievement in chemistry. With track and field on a roll, Isabella Allen was awarded the J. Hunt Wilson 1905 Prize in Analytical Chemistry for being a chemistry major with the highest ranking in courses and research in analytical chemistry.

Teresa Kiewiet (women's basketball) had been deemed most deserving on the basis of self-reliance, scholarship and student activities by the Civil and Environmental Engineering department faculty. She received the Russell C. Brinker Prize in Civil Engineering.

The first student-athlete from the swimming and diving program to be honored was Julia Balulis. The senior was one of seven individuals presented with the Daniel P. O'Neil Memorial Prize for pursuing projects such as individual research, honors work or design projects and who is also actively engaged with the arts and other co-curricular experiences.

Awarded annually to a sophomore engineering student based on academic performance, campus citizenship and professional orientation, the William G. McLean Tau Beta Pi Prize went to Maria Rawlek of volleyball.

Junior football player Ahmir Crawley demonstrated a superiority in English, earning him the Gilbert Prize. His teammate Donnie Williams was one of two students who got the Drs. Lawrence L. and MaryAnn L. Malinconico Award, which encouraged participation in and in recognition of personal growth and academic achievement in Geology off-campus courses.

Track and field's Roman Conca won the Rexroth Prize in German Culture/Literature Studies for his meritorious achievement in German. He is a current semi-finalist for the Fullbright Student Grant for combined ETA and research in Austria.

The Carl G., Jr. '67 and Deborah B. Anderson P'01 Mechanical Engineering Prize was awarded to Kira Marr (track and field), a mechanical engineering major on the strength of high academic achievement and promise for career excellence.

Olivia Catalina (softball) and Olivia Hover (women's lacrosse) paired together to get the William C. Rappolt '67 and Walter Oechsle '57 Neuroscience Prize. Both student-athletes contributed based upon scholarship in the classroom and laboratory, and service to the major, College or community.

Women's basketball's Kay Donahue was crowned with the David Fowler Atkins Jr. Prize for her promise of future usefulness in service to religious communities in work during her senior year in the department of religious studies.
 

For the latest on the Lafayette College athletics, follow the Leopards on X @GoLeopards and Instagram @goleopards.