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NCAA D2 Award Excellence

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Rockhurst named finalist for NCAA D2 Award of Excellence

Members of the Rockhurst women's volleyball team supported Morgan's Message
Rockhurst University has been named as one of 26 finalists for the 2025 Division II Award of Excellence, an accolade recognizing initiatives in the past year that exemplify the Division II philosophy, community engagement and student-athlete leadership.

Rockhurst student-athletes, led by its Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, launched a yearlong mental health awareness initiative that aimed to spread awareness about mental health stigmas and guide people toward resources. Each team had a mental health awareness game where players wore green accessories, the color of mental health awareness.

The initiative included starting a chapter of Morgan's Message, which seeks to eliminate mental health stigma in athletics; forming partnerships with the counseling center, sports medicine and athletic performance departments; and creating educational sessions, a social media campaign and a mental health library in the weight room.

Mae Beins, who is a member of the women's lacrosse team and SAAC president at Rockhurst, helped start the Morgan's Message chapter at Rockhurst last year.

"Although this is a newer project for us at Rockhurst, we have been able to provide student athletes with a small library of mental health books as well as have guest speakers and workshops targeted to start conversations around mental health," Beins said.

"Through starting our own chapter we hope to help all of our athletes on campus feel supported and comfortable to discuss their own challenges with peers and mentors."

"I'm proud of our SAAC leadership for their student-athlete mental health initiatives and for being named a finalist for the NCAA Award of Excellence," said Kathy Strecker, RU associate director of athletics, senior woman administrator and head coach of the men's and women's cross country programs.

Division II honors its members each year for conducting events that promote student-athletes giving back and serving as leaders within their communities or on their campuses. A committee of athletics administrators determined this year's finalists, and the national Division II Student-Athlete Advisory Committee selected the top three finalists, who will be announced at the Division II business session on Jan. 17 at the 2025 NCAA Convention in Nashville, Tennessee.

Each finalist will receive $750. In addition, the winner will receive $3,000, the first runner-up will receive $1,750 and the second runner-up will receive $1,500. All prize money is intended to be used for future SAAC initiatives or community engagement events.
 
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