Fiedler, Simpson-Sullivan Earn Top Honors at Night of the Owl

HOUSTON – Rice student-athletes celebrated a successful debut year in the American Athletic Conference Monday evening at the annual Night of the Owl event, presented by SAAC and the "R" Association. Senior men's basketball player Max Fiedler and senior track and field athlete Tara Simpson-Sullivan took home the night's top honors, the Bob Quin and Joyce Pounds Hardy awards, respectively.

Fiedler is the 13^th men's basketball player to earn the Bob Quin Award, and the first since Omar-Seli Mance in 2003. He finished his career as Rice's all-time leader in rebounds (1,144), assists (571), assist/turnover ratio (1.81), field goal percentage (65.8%), games played (148) and games started (135), while also placing second in blocks (125), eighth in field goals made (601), and 14^th in scoring (1,383). He's just the second player in school history with 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds, and is the only player in NCAA Division I history to record 1,000 career points, 1,000 rebounds, 500 assists, 100 blocks and 100 steals. Last year at UTSA, he became just the second player in school history with a triple-double, recording 23 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. In his career, he averaged 9.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists.

Fiedler is one of two student-athletes in Conference USA history to be named Scholar-Athlete of the Year three straight years. This past year, he became the third player in school history to be named an Academic All-American. He was twice named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District, and was named to the Conference USA All-Academic Team three straight years. A four-time member of the C-USA Honor Roll and Academic Medal, he was named to the 2023 NABC Honors Court.

Simpson-Sullivan becomes the 24^th athlete in women's track and field history to earn the Joyce Pounds Hardy Award. One of the greatest athletes in Rice track and field history, Simpson-Sullivan is a seven-time conference champion (six-time C-USA, one AAC) and an eight-time All-Conference honoree. She currently holds the Rice women's track and field records and the C-USA records in both the hammer throw and weight throw. In addition, Simpson-Sullivan is a six-time All-American, with First Team honors at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 2021 and 2023. This indoor season, she debuted in the AAC as a champion, winning the weight throw and later finishing 12th at the NCAA Championships. In 2021, she won the hammer throw at the British Championships.

A Sport Management major, Simpson-Sullivan is a four-time USTFCCCA All-Academic and was named to the College Sports Communicators All-District Team and the C-USA All-Academic Team last season. Simpson-Sullivan is also a four-time member of the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll.

Christian Francisco (football) and Katlyn Schmeltzer (women's cross country/track and field) were honored with the The Dr. Hubert E. Bray and Margie E. Sass Scholar Athlete of the Year awards, recognizing them as Rice's top student-athletes.

Sam Welsh (men's track and field) and Emilia Weske (volleyball) were named the Male and Female Newcomers of the Year.

The Stancliff-Sass and Stancliff-Duckett "R" Association Scholarships went to Izzy Rawlings (volleyball) and Travis Dowd (men's cross country/track and field), respectively. Dowd also received the Clanton/Winston Medical School Scholarship.

Cadan Hanson (men's cross country/track and field) received The Leland Winston, MD Courage & Diligence Award, presented to the student-athlete who displayed exceptional courage and diligence in the face of a serious injury.

Shelley Pennington and Friends Head Coach Lindsay Edmonds (women's basketball) was named Head Coach of the Year after claiming Rice Athletic's first-ever AAC title this season, while swimming assistant coach Jessica Rodriguez was named Assistant Coach of the Year.

The Excellence in Rice Athletics Award was presented to the Rice sports medicine staff. The Excellence in Rice Athletics Award is meant to honor an athlete, administrator, or community member who has gone above and beyond their role to embody the values of Rice Athletics and make a positive impact within the athletics community.

Rice men's track and field/cross country won the SAAC Cup. The SAAC Cup is a friendly competition between all Rice sports to motivate teams to attend the games of their peers with the goal of increasing team bonding and networking opportunities between teams.

The Best Moment Award went to Rice women's basketball's AAC Tournament run, defeating East Carolina 61-41 in the championship game to debut in the AAC as champions.

Night of the Owl Award Recipients
Joyce Pounds Hardy Award – Tara Simpson-Sullivan (women's track and field)
Bob Quin Award – Max Fiedler (men's basketball)
Male Newcomer of the Year – Sam Welsh (men's track and field)
Female Newcomer of the Year – Emilia Weske (volleyball)
Head Coach of the Year – Lindsay Edmonds(women's basketball)
Assistant Coach of the Year – Jessica Rodriguez (swimming)
Margie E. Sass Scholar Athlete – Katlyn Schmeltzer (women's track and field)
The Dr. Hubert E. Bray Scholar Athlete – Christian Francisco (football)
Stancliff-Duckett "R" Association Scholarship – Travis Dowd (men's track and field)
Stancliff-Sass "R" Association Scholarship – Izzy Rawlings (volleyball)
Clanton/Winston Medical School Scholarship – Travis Dowd (men's track and field)
The Leland Winston, MD Courage & Diligence Award – Cadan Hanson (men's track and field)
Excellence in Rice Athletics Award – Rice Sports Medicine Staff
SAAC Cup – Men's Track and Field / Cross Country
Best Moment Award – Women's Basketball's 2024 AAC Tournament Championship run

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