Butler track and field standout Jesse Hamlin was selected as the BIG EAST Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the league announced Wednesday. Georgetown women's soccer student-athlete Maja Lardner was named BIG EAST Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year. 

Both Lardner and Hamlin will receive a $4,000 scholarship, which may be applied to graduate or professional studies. The selections were made by the Conference's Academic Affairs Committee.

Hamlin earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics and computer science from Butler with a 3.798 cumulative GPA and is pursuing a master's degree in data analytics with a 3.904 graduate GPA. He graduated cum laude, earned College Sports Communicators Academic All-America second-team honors in 2026 (as well as CSC All-District honors in both 2025 and 2026) and was named to the BIG EAST All-Academic Team four times.

During the indoor track and field season, Hamlin won the 5,000 meters, mile and 4x800-meter relay at the BIG EAST Indoor Championships, becoming the first athlete in conference history to win all three events at the same championship. He was named the BIG EAST Most Outstanding Track Performer and High Point Performer before placing fifth in the 3,000 meters at the NCAA Indoor Championships to earn First Team All-America honors.

Hamlin becomes the third Bulldog male student-athlete to be named the BIG EAST Scholar-Athlete of the Year since Butler joined the conference prior to the 2013-14 season. Hamlin joins men's soccer alumni David Goldsmith (2016) and Eric Dick (2017) in receiving the recognition.

Talia Sommer, who graduated from Butler following the 2025 women's soccer program, was the Bulldogs' institutional nominee for the BIG EAST Women's Scholar-Athlete Award.
 
2025-26 BIG EAST Institutional Male Scholar-Athlete Awards

School	Name, Sport(s)
Butler	Jesse Hamlin, Track & Field *
DePaul	Alex Bernstein, Track & Field
Georgetown	Zach Zengue, Soccer
Marquette	Justin Juniel, Track & Field
Providence	Richard Joseph, Lacrosse
Seton Hall	Axel Berglund, Soccer
Villanova	Ryan "Coop" Pamer, Golf
Xavier	Aiden Leamer, Swimming & Diving

* Men's Scholar-Athlete of the Year
 
 
2025-26 BIG EAST Institutional Female Scholar-Athlete Awards

School	Name, Sport(s)
Butler	Talia Sommer, Soccer
UConn	Molly Rogers, Swimming & Diving
Creighton	Ava Martin, Volleyball
DePaul	Helen Baumgarten, Track & Field
Georgetown	Maja Lardner, Soccer *
Marquette	Cate Downs, Soccer
Providence	Thaea Mouratidis, Soccer
St. John's	Jamora Alves, Track & Field
Seton Hall	Lara Todorovic, Golf
Villanova	Hannah Dickinson, Soccer
Xavier	Natalie Bain, Soccer

* Women's Scholar-Athlete of the Year
 
BIG EAST Male Scholar-Athletes of the Year

Year	Name, School, Sport
1985	Joey David, Pittsburgh, Basketball
1986	John Prior, Connecticut, Track & Field
1987	Harold Jensen, Villanova, Basketball
1988	Dave Echeverria, Villanova, Swimming & Diving
1989	Chris Craft, Villanova, Swimming & Diving
1990	Pat O'Kelly, Seton Hall, Soccer
1991	David Honor, St. John's, Baseball
1992	Steve Holman, Georgetown, Track & Field
1993	Hector Zamora, Seton Hall, Soccer
1994	Sebastien Goulet, Syracuse, Swimming
1995	Kevin Lyles, Seton Hall, Track & Field
1996	Gil Kovalski, Miami, Tennis
1997	Christian Fogarazzo, St. John's, Track & Field
1998	Errol Williams, Notre Dame, Track & Field
1999	Angelo Ciminiello, Providence, Baseball
2000	Scott VanEpps, Pittsburgh, Swimming & Diving
2001	Chris Hamblin, Boston College, Soccer
2002	Gregory Strohmann, Seton Hall, Soccer
2003	Casey Schmidt, Boston College, Soccer
2004	Chris Wingert, St. John's, Soccer
2005	Guy Melamed, Boston College, Soccer
2006	Trevor O'Grady, Rutgers, Track & Field
2007	Drew Eckman, Villanova, Track & Field
2008	Jeremy Stultz, Pittsburgh, Swimming & Diving
2009	Zak Boggs, USF, Soccer
2010	Francisco Aristeguieta, USF, Soccer
2011	Brian Karalunas, Villanova, Lacrosse
2012	Eric Finan, Cincinnati, Cross Country/Track & Field
2013	Grant Van De Casteele, Notre Dame, Soccer
2014	Charles Lyon, Marquette, Soccer
2015	Sam McEntee, Villanova, Cross Country/Track & Field
2016	Thomas Hackimer, St. John's, Baseball
2017	David Goldsmith, Butler, Soccer
2018	Eric Dick, Butler, Soccer
2019	Sven Koenig, Creighton, Soccer
2021	Marcelo Rocha, Providence, Track & Field
2022	Dante Polvara, Georgetown, Soccer
2023	Will Bowen, Georgetown, Lacrosse
2024	Parker Stokes, Georgetown, Cross Country/Track & Field
2025	Liam Murphy, Villanova, Track & Field
2026	Jesse Hamlin, Butler, Track & Field

Note: In 2019-20, the BIG EAST did not present the Male or Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
BIG EAST Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year

Year	Name, School, Sport
1985	Leigh Curl, Connecticut, Basketball
1986	Joanne Keehs, Villanova, Track & Field
1987	Karen Ferreria, Providence, Volleyball
1988	Noreen Coughlin, Pittsburgh, Volleyball
1989	Vicki Huber, Villanova, Track & Field
1990	Siobhan Gallagher, Providence, Track & Field
1991	Cami White, Providence, Field Hockey
1992	Kelly Larkin, Syracuse, Field Hockey
1993	Nnenna Lynch, Villanova, Track & Field
1994	Allison Williams, Pittsburgh, Track & Field
1995	Becky Spies, Villanova, Cross Country/Track & Field
1996	Najuma Fletcher, Pittsburgh, Track & Field
1997	Jen Renola, Notre Dame, Soccer
1998	Charity Wachera, West Virginia, Track & Field
1999	Gladys Ganiel, Providence, Cross Country/Track & Field
2000	Jenny Streiffer, Notre Dame, Soccer
2001	Ruth Riley, Notre Dame, Basketball
2002	Jarrah Myers, Notre Dame, Softball
2003	Erin McIntyre, Rutgers, Swimming & Diving
2004	Vanessa Pruzinsky, Notre Dame, Soccer
2005	Nicole Lee, Georgetown, Cross Country/Track & Field
2006	Kelly Harrigan, Rutgers, Swimming & Diving
2007	Jessica Javelet, Louisville, Field Hockey
2008	Jillian Drouin, Syracuse, Track & Field
2009	Jennifer Kleinhans, Connecticut, Field Hockey
2010	Meagan Dooley, Pittsburgh, Volleyball
2011	Maya Moore, Connecticut, Basketball
2012	Natalie Kulla, Marquette, Soccer
2013	Sam Roecker, Providence, Cross Country/Track & Field
2014	Emily Sisson, Providence, Cross Country/Track & Field
2015	Shelbey Manthorpe, Seton Hall, Volleyball
2016	Rachel Daly, St. John's, Soccer
2017	Lauren Smith, Creighton, Volleyball
2018	Alexis Walkden, Seton Hall, Softball
2019	Taryn Kloth, Creighton, Volleyball
2021	Aspasia Avgeri, DePaul, Tennis
2022	Maggie Donahue, Georgetown, Cross Country
2023	Julia Leas, Georgetown, Soccer
2024	Julia Leas, Georgetown, Soccer
2025	Kendra Wait, Creighton, Volleyball
2026	Maja Lardner, Georgetown, Soccer

Note: In 2019-20, the BIG EAST did not present the Male or Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.