COLLEGE PARK, MD -- Maryland field hockey student-athlete Emma DeBerdine and wrestling student-athlete Jaxon Smith were named the University of Maryland's 2025 Big Ten Medal of Honor recipients and Maryland Student-Athletes of the Year.

The Big Ten Medal of Honor is the conference's most exclusive award and was the first of its kind in intercollegiate athletics to recognize academic and athletic excellence. The Big Ten Medal of Honor was first awarded in 1915 to one student-athlete from the graduating class of each university who had "attained the greatest proficiency in athletics and scholastic work." Big Ten schools currently feature almost 10,000 student-athletes, but only 28 earn this prestigious award on an annual basis. In the 100 years of the Medal of Honor, more than 1,500 students have earned this distinction.

DeBerdine has been a stalwart for the Maryland Field Hockey program on and off the field since coming to Maryland in 2019. A 2024 United States Olympic Team member, DeBerdine was a three-time National Field Hockey Coaches Association All-American, earning honors in 2019, 2022 and 2024. She was also a First-Team All-Big Ten selection three times, in 2019, 2022 and 2024 along with earning NFCA All-Mid Atlantic Region Honors in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2024. She has been a member of the United States National Team since 2022. She was named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team in 2022 and 2024. She helped lead the Terps to the NCAA Tournament four times with two Semifinal appearances. The Lancaster, Pennsylvania native, started in 95 of the 96 games she played in, tallying 74 points on 23 goals and 28 assists.

DeBerdine earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Marketing from Maryland in Spring of 2023 and a Master's of Science in Management Studies from Maryland in 2025. She was a four-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and four-time NFHCA Academic Squad member.

She joins her sister Brooke in becoming the first Maryland siblings to earn the Big Ten Medal of Honor as Brooke won the honor in 2022. The DeBerdine sisters are the only Maryland field hockey players to earn the Big Ten's most prestigious honor, both playing under legendary coach Missy Meharg.

Smith had one of the most decorated seasons for a Maryland wrestler as he earned All-American honors in 2025, finishing in sixth place in the 2025 NCAA Championships at 184 pounds. He became Maryland's first All-American wrestler since Youssif Hemida did so in 2019 and is just the 21st wrestler in program history to achieve All-America status. Smith also became the first wrestler under head coach Alex Clemsen to achieve All-America status. He was a placer in the Big Tens in each of the last three years (third in 2023, fourth in 2024, fourth in 2025). Smith helped Maryland to its best finish ever in the Big Ten Championships in 2025 while earning a school record in dual conference victories. He also helped the Terps to their best finish and most points in the NCAA Championships since 2014. Smith represented Team USA as part of the U23 team in the Pan-American Championship in Mexico this past spring and captured a bronze medal. Smith finished fourth in the Big Ten Championships in 2025.

A native of Cartersville, Georgia, Smith will graduate from Maryland this spring with a degree in Real Estate and the Built Environment. He was named a NWCA Scholar All-American in 2025 and has earned Academic All-Big Ten three times while at Maryland.

The Big Ten, the nation's oldest collegiate conference, is commemorating the 111th anniversary of the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 2025.