BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Bucknell men’s soccer’s Freddie Lapworth and Navy women’s basketball’s Maren Louridas secured the 2025-26 Patriot League Award of Outstanding Leadership and Character when the League office announced the honors on Thursday.
Administrators of the Patriot League’s campus Student-Athlete Advisory Committees (SAAC) voted to select Lapworth and Louridas for the prestigious award.
Lapworth is the fourth Bison and fourth men’s soccer student-athlete to receive the League’s Award of Outstanding Leadership and Character. Louridas is the second Mid and fifth women’s basketball student-athlete to be recognized with the accolade.
The Patriot League established the Award of Outstanding Leadership and Character to recognize individuals who demonstrate excellence in leadership and service while participating in Patriot League athletics. One men’s and one women’s student-athlete have been recognized since the award’s inception in 2011-12, with ties for the women’s accolade twice in the last four years and a tie on the men’s side for the first time this year.
Provided the minimum conduct standards are met, any Patriot League student-athlete or team is eligible for the award. The definition of leadership and character for this award includes but is not limited to any of the following ideals: demonstrated leadership on the "field" of competition and within the campus community; promotes a leadership vision for the betterment of one's team or teammates; mentorship of teammates; role model on campus; active participation in on-campus and/or community service projects; perseverance in overcoming hardships; demonstration of trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship.
Patriot League Award of Outstanding Leadership and Character
Freddie Lapworth
Bucknell Men’s Soccer
Freddie Lapworth’s impact on Bucknell University extends far beyond the soccer field. Through his leadership and commitment to the campus community, Lapworth departed as one of the most recognizable and respected student-athletes at Bucknell, leaving a lasting impression on those around him.
“There is not a space on our campus where Freddie's name is not known,” said Associate Director of Athletics Eline Vermeulen. “In his time at Bucknell, he has made an impact in so many spaces and with so many people, I couldn't possibly list them all.”
A captain and goalkeeper for the Bison men’s soccer team, Lapworth helped lead Bucknell to the 2024 Patriot League Championship, the program’s first League title since 2014, after the Bison were picked ninth in the Patriot League preseason poll. He was named the 2024 Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Year and finished his career as a two-time First Team All-Patriot League selection.
Lapworth not only displays his leadership on the field but through various avenues of athletics, including being elected president of the 2025-26 Student-Athlete Advisory Committee by his fellow student-athletes, a role that Vermeulen described as “a true testament to his integrity, ability to influence and unwavering sense of responsibility to others.” Under his leadership, Bucknell’s SAAC continued initiatives such as the Stick-or-Treat Halloween event, the Black History Month Reading Initiative with Kelly Elementary School and bingo events with residents at local nursing homes. SAAC also partnered with Bucknell Student Government for the annual Easter Egg Hunt and worked with Camp Koala.
Additionally, Lapworth serves as one of Bucknell Athletics’ representatives on the Committee on Athletics and is a member of a newly formed committee through the Office of the Dean of Students focused on the student experience. Outside of athletics, he served as an instructor through Bison Recreation, teaching HIIT, pilates and spin classes, and works at the Kenneth Langone Athletics and Recreation Center. As the Director of Alumni Relations for the Bucknell Real Estate Club, he also helps connect current students with alumni while enhancing the organization’s visibility within the industry.
Throughout his time at Bucknell, Lapworth’s impact extended far beyond his athletic accomplishments. Whether mentoring teammates, teaching fitness classes, organizing community service initiatives or advocating for fellow student-athletes, he consistently demonstrated a commitment to serving others and bringing people together.
“Freddie’s Bucknell journey reflects a student who has grown into a principled, thoughtful and community-minded leader,” Vermeulen added. “His intellectual maturity, unwavering conviction and strength of character make him an exceptional representative of Bucknell University.”
Maren Louridas
Navy Women’s Basketball
Maren Louridas’ impact on the United States Naval Academy extends far beyond the women’s basketball court. Through her leadership, character and commitment to her teammates, she has distinguished herself as one of the most respected student-athletes at the Navy, leaving a lasting impact on her fellow midshipmen.
Academically, she is ranked No. 1 in her class and was a Rhodes Scholar finalist, and while her academic record is impeccable and worthy on its own merit, Louridas’ character, compassion, and positivity set her apart from any other person her head coach, Tim Taylor, has had the opportunity to work with in his career.
Over the past four years, she developed into one of the most impactful leaders within the women’s basketball program and across the Naval Academy. As Head Coach Tim Taylor noted, “Throughout my career across different industries, one main observation I have noted concerning elite level leadership is the ability a great leader has to never waver in the darkest moments faced by their team or organization. As in the famous quote by Charles Dickens in the
Tale of Two Cities, ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times’, great leaders always give their teams hope even in the direst of circumstances. This trait separates the truly elite leaders such as Maren Louridas from the average ones.”
Louridas arrived at Navy as part of Taylor’s first recruiting class and quickly emerged as a leader during one of the most challenging periods in program history. Despite a 1-29 season during her freshman year, she earned Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors five times and was named to the All-Rookie Team. More importantly, she helped keep the team united through adversity.
“I have always said ‘how you respond in the toughest of times determines your growth path,’” Taylor said. “I believe that season truly shaped Maren into the leader she has become today.”
As the program steadily improved, Louridas embraced whatever role was needed for team success, including being selected as Captain of Captains her senior season, chosen by fellow team captains across the Academy’s 36 varsity sports programs.
Beyond athletics, Louridas has been involved in community service efforts, helping feed the homeless at The Light House, volunteering with Special Olympics clinics, participating in food drives and supporting the Harvest Patch initiative.
While balancing all those responsibilities, she helped lead Navy to a Patriot League Championship and a school-record season in 2025-26.
“In my 30 years of coaching, I can confidently say that Maren Louridas is one of the most caring and devoted teammates I have ever encountered, said Taylor. Her greatest strength is her genuine care for others. She has an extraordinary ability to make every person around her feel valued, supported, and inspired.”
As her head coach concluded, “As you consider this award, I believe it is important to recognize not only Maren’s accomplishments, but also the remarkable growth, leadership, integrity, and selflessness she has demonstrated throughout her journey here at the Academy and the Patriot League. She transformed our program’s culture and established a legacy that will endure long after her graduation. Most importantly, she showed all of us how true leadership in the ‘worst of times’ can ultimately lead a team to the ‘best of times’.”
Patriot League Award of Outstanding Leadership and Character Nominees
Other nominees for the 2025-26 Patriot League Award of Outstanding Leadership and Character were American’s Ciera Thacker (women’s track and field), Army West Point’s Brigid Duffy (women’s soccer/women’s lacrosse), Boston University’s Charles Schreiner (men’s swimming and diving), Colgate’s Rachael Martinez (women’s volleyball) and Matthew Szypula (men’s swimming and diving), Holy Cross’ Kaitlyn Flanagan (women’s basketball) and Liam Lyons (men’s track and field/cross country), Lehigh’s Lily Fandre (women’s basketball) and Tyler Ochojski (football), Loyola Maryland’s Floyd Conlin (men’s swimming and diving) and Cassidy Garcia (women’s rowing), Navy’s Michael Woods (men’s basketball) and Richmond’s Carter Glassmyer (football).
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes who are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.