VERMILLION, S.D.—Sixth-year senior Brock Mogensen and fifth-year senior Madison Harms earned top honors Sunday at The Charlies, an annual award ceremony that honors student-athlete achievements during the 2023-24 academic year.
 
Mogensen, hailing from Farmington, Minnesota, received the Dr. John Van Why Male Athlete of the Year award. He was recognized as a first-team All-American by four different publications: AFCA, Stats Perform, Phil Steele and Associated Press. He was the Valley's Defensive Player of the Year and finished 11th in the voting for the Buck Buchanan Award. He led the valley and ranked 15th nationally in tackles with 113 including 54 solo stops. Mogensen is the second football player in the last three years to earn the award.
 
Harms, a native of Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, was named the Catie Tobin Female Athlete of the Year. Harms was the Summit League Player of the Year and garnered AVCA All-America honorable mention accolades. She's the Summit League's all-time blocks leader with 666 in her career. The middle blocker also joined the 1,000-kill club during the season and holds South Dakota's rally scoring era records for assisted blocks, solo blocks and total blocks. She's a four-time all-Summit honoree. Harms is the second-straight volleyball player to net the honor.
 
The men's athlete of the year is named for Dr. John Van Why, the University's former physical education department chair who pushed for the importance of athletics and physical activity in the 1950s. The women's athlete of the year is named for Catie Tobin, who was one of the first female track and field athletes to compete for the University of South Dakota.
 
Cross country's Abby Ripperda and swimming & diving's Caleb Swanson were named the Female and Male Scholar-Athletes of the Year, respectively, which is awarded to a senior with a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.2. Ripperda is a seventh-year senior from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in her third year of physical therapy school. She led South Dakota to a Summit League Championship this past fall, garnering all-Summit and all-region honors. Swanson is a senior from Mitchell, South Dakota, that's involved on campus as a senator for the Student Government Association (SGA), is on the university's sustainability committee and is a representative on the athletic board of control. He was also a 2023 Truman Scholar.
 
Senior sprinter Erin Kinney out of Sioux Falls garnered the Colonel Wales Award for the second consecutive year. The award is presented to the Coyotes' most outstanding student-athlete from the state of South Dakota. Kinney scored 20.5 points to lead the Coyotes at the Summit League Indoor Championships, winning league titles in the 60 meters and as part of the 4x400 relay. She also leads the league in the 100 meters so far in the outdoor season.
 
Men's basketball player Kaleb Stewart and women's cross country runner Madison Brouwer were named the Male and Female Rookies of the Year, respectively. Stewart led the Coyotes with 15.6 points per game and garnered honorable mention recognition from the league. Brouwer was all-Summit first team in helping South Dakota capture a Summit League title. She earned the Summit League Newcomer of the Championship award as the top freshman finisher.
 
Head football coach Bob Nielson collected the Coach of the Year recognition in leading the football program to a 10-3 record and the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs.
 
The Outstanding Team of the Year award went to women's cross country after collecting their first Summit League Championship title since 2018 and sixth all-time.
 
There was a tie in the voting for the Performance of the Year. The two recipients were: the men's track and field team's strong close at the Summit League Championships in the triple jump and 4x400 relay en route to locking up the program's second-straight Summit title and junior swimmer Emily Kahn's performance at the Summit League Championships. Kahn captured five Summit League titles and broke five school records.
 
Men's track and field athlete Tristan Gray, who sustained serious injuries from a motorcycle accident in 2022 and returned to be a part of the Coyotes' Summit League Championship this past indoor season, was one of two Courage Award recipients. The other was Ripperda, who suffered numerous injuries throughout her Coyote career and returned for her seventh season of cross country to lead the Coyotes to a conference title.
 
The Student-Athlete Choice Award, presented annually to a member of the athletic department staff, went to strength and conditioning coach Natalie Portwood.
 
A complete list of award winners follows.
 
Dr. John Van Why Award (Male Student-Athlete of the Year): Brock Mogensen, football
 
Catie Tobin Award (Female Student-Athlete of the Year): Madison Harms, volleyball
 
Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Caleb Swanson, swimming & diving
 
Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Abby Ripperda, cross country
 
Colonel Wales Award (Most Outstanding Athlete from South Dakota): Erin Kinney, track & field
 
Male Rookie of the Year: Kaleb Stewart, men's basketball
 
Female Rookie of the Year: Madison Brouwer, cross country and track & field
 
Courage Award: Tristan Gray, track & field; Abby Ripperda, cross country
 
Outstanding Team of the Year: Women's Cross Country
 
Coach of the Year: Bob Nielson, football
 
Performance of the Year (tied): Men's track and field closing strong at the end of the meet to win their second-straight Summit League title; Emily Kahn's incredible performance at the Summit League Championships with five conference titles and school records
 
Student-Athlete Choice Award: Natalie Portwood, strength & conditioning
 
Dr. Jack Powell Leader of the Pack Award for Academic Excellence: Men's Golf
 
Dr. Tina Keller Leader of the Pack Award for Academic Excellence: Volleyball
 
Coyote Cup: Women's Track & Field
 
Coyote Character Awards: Max Burchill, men's basketball; Morgan Hansen, women's basketball; Jarek Glenn, men's cross country; McKenna Herrmann, women's cross country; Brock Mogensen, football; Nick LaMotte, men's golf; Ella Greenberg, women's golf; Janaina Zanin, soccer; Alivia Conte, softball; Zachary Kopp, swimming & diving; Katherine Roberson, swimming & diving; Paige Alter, tennis; Ethan Heitman, men's indoor track & field; Tre Young, men's outdoor track & field; Ella Byers, women's indoor track & field; Madison Jochum, women's outdoor track & field; Franziska Neck, triathlon; Madison Harms, volleyball