WEST LAFAYETTE - Purdue Athletics is proud to announce softball standout Moriah Polar and men's basketball star Braden Smith were selected as the 2025-26 Ricks Family Female and Male Athletes of the Year.
Polar becomes the second ever softball student-athlete to earn the honor for the Boilermakers, while Smith is the 13th repeat winner in school history.
Polar leads the nation in hits (92) and ranks second nationally in batting average (.554) with just a handful of games left in the regular season. Her rocket-like ascent to the top of college softball has been a spark for the Boilermakers this season, as Purdue has set team single-season offensive bests throughout the program record book.
Polar's month of April has included taking the throne as Purdue's single-season hits record holder, surpassing the previous mark set by Ashley Hall in 2007. She also holds Purdue's single-season record for runs scored (60) and currently ranks first in season slugging percentage (.747) and on-base percentage (.576).
At the conference level, Polar's 92 hits in all games far outpaces the second-place individual of 76. The Pearland, Texas, native, also leads the way in league action with her 35 hits.
Smith, a three-time first-team All-Big Ten honoree, capped off one of the greatest careers for a point guard in NCAA history this past season. In addition to being a two-time first-team All-American, Smith was the 2025 Cousy Award winner, 2026 Big Ten Tournament MVP and a West Regional All-Tournament team member.
Smith ended his senior campaign averaging 14.3 points, 8.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.7 steals, shooting 44.0 percent from the field and 82.5 percent from the free throw line. He finished the season with 345 assists, leading the country and ranking fifth all-time on the NCAA single-season assists list.
Smith became the NCAA’s all-time leader in career assists in the NCAA Tournament first-round victory over Queens, ending his career with 1,103 assists, 27 more than Duke’s Bobby Hurley (1991-94). Smith is the only player in NCAA history to have at least 1,500 points, 1,000 assists and 500 rebounds and he blew away those marks with 1,932 career points, 1,103 career assists and 673 career rebounds.
The Westfield native become Purdue’s 30th consensus first-team All-America selection, the second most in NCAA history, with his selection to the USBWA and NABC teams.