Photo caption: Ouachita Athletes and Scholar Athletes of the Year for 2024-25. From left to right: Abbey Moore, Female Scholar Athlete of the Year; Miles Schulze, Male Athlete of the Year; and Courtney Hanson, Female Athlete of the Year. Not pictured is Ramon Strassmann, Male Scholar Athlete of the Year. Photo by Dr. Wesley Kluck.
ARKADELPHIA – The Ouachita Baptist University Department of Athletics held its annual awards ceremony on Tuesday night at the Jones Performing Arts Center to celebrate the accomplishments of the 2024-25 season and to name its annual award winners.
The awards portion of the ceremony started with the announcement of the 2024-25 All-Ouachita athletic and academic teams, which include the top athlete and the top scholar athlete from each team as selected by the head coaches.
Ouachita women's basketball won the third annual Sharp Cup, presented by the Ouachita Student-Athlete Advisory Committee to the team that won the year-long competition with points awarded based on campus activities involvement, community service, and attendance at other athletic events. The softball team finished in second place.
The ceremony ended with the naming of the Ouachita athlete and scholar athlete of the year awards.
Women's soccer senior defender Abbey Moore repeated as Ouachita Female Scholar Athlete of the Year. Junior men's tennis player Ramon Strassmann was selected as the Ouachita Male Scholar Athlete of the Year. Junior volleyball player Courtney Hanson was picked as the Ouachita Female Athlete of the Year. Ouachita senior swimmer Miles Schulze earned the title of Ouachita Male Athlete of the Year.
Moore is set to graduate in May with degrees in biology and kinesiology. The Maumelle, Arkansas native carries a perfect 4.0 cumulative GPA, is a seven-time selection to the Ouachita President's List, a three-time selection to the Academic All-District Team, and a three-time selection to the GAC All-Academic Team. On the field, she helped lead the Tigers to the Great American Conference regular season and tournament championships this past fall. She was selected to the All-GAC Honorable Mention Team and was selected to the GAC All-Tournament Team.
Strassmann holds a perfect 4.0 cumulative GPA majoring in finance and business administration. The Mueselbach, Switzerland native is a five-time selection to the Ouachita President's List, a two-time selection to the ITA Scholar Athlete Team, a two-time selection to the MIAA Academic Honor Roll, a 2024 selection to the Academic All-District Team, and most recently, earned the 2025 MIAA A-Game Scholar Award for men's tennis. On the court, he is ranked nationally in both singles and doubles and earned All-MIAA/GAC honors in both this season. He and teammate Phil Exner won the ITA central region doubles championship this past fall to earn a ticket to the ITA Cup for the second straight season.
Hanson was one of the catalysts behind one of the most successful seasons in Ouachita volleyball history. The Arlington, Texas native was selected to the All-GAC First Team and was later named the GAC Tournament Most Valuable Player after helping the Tigers capture the program's first ever GAC tournament championship leading to the program's first ever appearance in the NCAA tournament. The setter recorded 18 double-doubles this season in assists and digs and had at least 30 assists in 28 out of 32 total matches. She reached the 50-assist mark in seven matches. She ranked 12th in all of NCAA Division II and first in the GAC in total assists (1,279) and ranked second in the GAC in assists per set and fourth in aces (43).
Schulze turned in one of the most impressive seasons in Ouachita swimming history. The Melissa, Texas native was named the 2024-25 New South Intercollegiate Swim Conference Performer of the Year to go along with first-team all-conference honors. He is the NSISC champion in both the 100-yard and 200-yard breaststroke this season and is the new record holder in the NSISC for 200-yard breaststroke. He set Ouachita records in both events and earned First Team All-America honors in both events at the 2025 NCAA Division II National Championships in Indianapolis. Schulze helped Ouachita win the NSISC championship for the first time this past season and helped the Tigersharks finish undefeated in dual meets at 10-0.
2024-25 ALL-OUACHITA ACADEMIC TEAM
2024-25 ALL-OUACHITA ATHLETIC TEAM
