The Barton Community College Athletic Department celebrated the accomplishments of its 2025-26 athletic seasons last Wednesday evening at the annual end-of-the-year banquet held at the Great Bend Convention Center.
Held annually in partnership with the Cougar Booster Club, the celebration recognized the achievements of Barton's teams, student-athletes, coaches, and support personnel following another successful year across Cougar athletics.
Following opening remarks, Master of Ceremonies and Athletic Director Trevor Rolfs welcomed attendees before being joined on stage by Cougar Booster Club President Ken Henderson, who introduced members of the Booster Board.
Rolfs then presented the 2026 Booster of the Year Award to Jeremy and Diane Guthrie in recognition of their continued support of Barton Athletics, commitment to college initiatives, and support of Cougar student-athletes throughout the year.
The evening also featured program recaps and highlights from each of Barton's athletic teams before the presentation of four special departmental awards, selected through nominations and voting by Barton coaches and staff.
Leading off the honors were the Most Inspirational Student-Athlete awards. Women's nominees included Lauren Heller (dance), Celine Riddle (track and field), Molly Steiner (softball), and Annika Tabanag (golf).
Despite battling significant health concerns throughout the year, Heller earned the award for her resilience and determination, inspiring others through her step-by-step recovery while continuing her dedication to academics and her dance career.
On the men's side, Joshua "AJ" Almanza (wrestling) and Keandro Gordon (track and field) were nominated, with Almanza receiving the honor for his selfless commitment to the team by regularly competing up multiple weight classes throughout the season, often surrendering nearly forty pounds to opponents for the betterment of the team.
Earning Barton's Student-Athlete of the Year honors were Tailynn Level of the women's bowling program and Kyler Horsman of the baseball team following record-setting seasons and instrumental contributions to their respective teams' successes.
Additional female nominees included Asharria Ulett (track and field), Mina Kaneko (volleyball), and Karter Alvord (softball), while Chavez Penn (track and field) and Masaki Tsuji (soccer) were also recognized among the men's nominees.
The department additionally recognized the many behind-the-scenes contributors whose daily efforts help support Barton Athletics, including faculty, facilities personnel, team managers, and members of the athletic training staff.
Six individuals from Barton's Athletic Training program were honored during the ceremony. Bethany Sears, who was recognized last season as the program's top dependable and value award recipient, earned this year's Most Outstanding Student Athletic Trainer Award for her leadership and work with the volleyball and softball programs.
Additional Athletic Training honors included Charles Simpson-Eighmy as top sophomore student, Wyatt Uken as top freshman student, James Kingsbury as most improved sophomore, Nethan Cauthon as most improved freshman, and Taylor Sheehy along with Ryann Metro receiving the program's "Crutch" Award.
Complete list of Awards
Booster of the Year: Jeremy and Diane Guthrie
Student-Athletes of the Year: Tailynn Level (Women's Bowling), Kyler Horsman (Baseball)
Inspirational Athletes of the Year: Lauren Heller (Dance), Joshua "AJ" Almanza (Wrestling)
Student Athletic Trainer Awards:
Outstanding Student Athletic Trainer: Bethany Sears
Top Sophomore Student Athletic Trainer: Charlie Simpson-Eighmy
Top Freshman Student Athletic Trainer: Wyatt Uken
Most Improved Sophomore Student Athletic Trainer: James Kingsbury
Most Improved Freshman Student Athletic Trainer: Nethan Cauthon
The "Crutch" Award: Taylor Sheehy and Ryann Metro