SALEM, Va. -- Millsaps College women's basketball senior center
Elyse Warren was named a finalist for the prestigious 2025-26 Jostens Trophy, which was announced by the Rotary Club of Salem, Va. on Thursday. Only a select group of 11 male and 11 female student-athletes were named after an initial submission process.
The 22 finalists' submissions advance to the national selection committee to determine who will claim the 2025-26 Jostens Trophy honors.
The Jostens Trophy honors - one for men's basketball and one for women's basketball - are national awards created by the Rotary Club of Salem and sponsored by Jostens, Inc., to recognize the most outstanding men's and women's Division III basketball players of the year. The awards focus on three major criteria: basketball ability, academic prowess, and service to one's surrounding communities.
The Jostens Trophy models the Rotary International motto of "Service Above Self" by recognizing those who truly fit the ideal of a well-rounded Division III student-athlete. The 2026 season marks the 28th time the Jostens Trophy honors will be awarded.
The Rotary Club of Salem is responsible for the initial review of the nominees, which it conducts over a two-week period. The Club's Jostens Trophy Committee objectively reviews the nominees and uses a numerical system to pare down the pools to an initial list of 22 finalists -- 11 for the men's award and 11 for the women's trophy.
The finalists will now be reviewed by the Jostens Trophy National Selection Committee. The committee is composed of men and women from across the country. The committee features current and former athletic administrators and head coaches, past Jostens Trophy recipients, and select members of the Division III media. The committee will spend the next week-plus reviewing the nominees with the aim of announcing the two winners the week following both national championship events.
Warren's 2025-26 Basketball Highlights/Honors
On Feb. 24, she was named the SAA Women's Basketball Defensive Athlete of the Year and All-SAA First Team ... She has set both the conference single-season and career rebounding records with 479 and 1,219 boards, respectively.
Across NCAA Division III, Warren currently ranks third in total boards and third in rebounds per game (17.1 rpg) ... Earlier this season, she grabbed 33 rebounds in a single game, which is also a conference record.
She also second nationally with 24 double-doubles in just 24 games ... Averaging 14.8 points per game, she ranks seventh in the conference ... With her 1,236 career points, she is the first player in program history to record 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.
The Rhodes Scholarship Finalist is also first in the league in field goal percentage at 53.9 percent (153-of-284 FG) ... Warren also has 33 steals, 13 blocks and nine assists.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association Division III National Player of the Week (Jan. 6) earned her fourth All-Conference accolade after an Honorable Mention nod her freshman season, and a pair of All-SAA Second Team appearances ... Warren was also named to the D3hoops.com Team of the Week on Jan. 5 and was named the SAA Women's Basketball Athlete of the Week three times this season.
Warren's Academic Highlights and Honors
Rhodes Scholarship Finalist ... Has been named to Club 40 four times with perfect 4.0 GPA semesters ... Multiple times on the President's and Dean's Lists ... Three times on the SAA Academic Honor Roll to date ... She has earned Millsaps highest academic scholarship ... Received multiple prestigious research awards ... Biochemistry Ford Fellow.
Organic Chemistry/General Chemistry/Physics Teaching Assistant ... Santiago Ramon y Cajal Research Award ... Joseph B. Price General Chemistry Award ... Her scholarly work spans advanced mathematics research, organic chemistry synthesis of kinase inhibitors for cancer treatment, neuropharmacology research on non-opioid analgesics, and biochemistry research on epigenetic drug effects.
She has presented at regional conferences and contributed to manuscripts currently in preparation ...University of Tennessee Health and Science Center Summer Research Scholars Internship.
Warren's Community Service
Elyse volunteers with the American Cancer Society CARES program and helped establish the first Mississippi cohort ... She serves as a Crisis Text Hotline counselor supporting individuals in mental health crises ... Volunteers with the A Step Ahead Foundation promoting women's reproductive health education.
Warren's Leadership Opportunities
She currently serves as President of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee ... President of Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society where she was recently awarded the Gen. Russell E. Dougherty National Leader of the Year award.
President of Nu Rho Psi National Neuroscience Honor Society ... Head Chair of the Honor Council ... Medical School Chair for the Medical Readiness Initiative ... Vice President of Major Lifts.
Listed below are the finalists for the 2026 Jostens Trophy awards (listed alphabetically by last name):
| WOMEN'S FINALISTS |
| Isabella Antonacci, Allegheny College |
| Riley Corcoran, Bridgewater College (Va.) |
| Brianna Fitzgerald, SUNY New Paltz |
| Natalie Gricius, Carroll University |
| Vanessa Hall, Utica University |
| Lexy Harris, Washington University in St. Louis |
| Kaci Kranson, University of Scranton |
| Macy Miller, Ohio Wesleyan University |
| Samaree Perkins, Capital University |
| Mary Schleusner, Washington and Lee University |
| Elyse Warren, Millsaps College |
| MEN'S FINALISTS |
| Chris Bryant, Hardin-Simmons University |
| Brady Burman, Sarah Lawrence College |
| Mason Dopirak, Milwaukee School of Engineering |
| Mason Funk, Illinois Wesleyan University |
| Sam Grieger, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse |
| Scott Gyimesi, Tufts University |
| Chase Morgan, Maryville College (Tenn.) |
| Kevin Nowoswiat, Franklin & Marshall College |
| Ben Pearce, Emory University |
| Jack Plesser, Union College |
| Soren Richardson, Wheaton College (Ill.) |
To keep up to date with everything surrounding the Millsaps College women's basketball program follow the Majors on X and Instagram, like Millsaps Majors Athletics on Facebook and visit gomajors.com.
Founded in Jackson, Mississippi in 1890, Millsaps College is a national liberal arts college dedicated to academic excellence, open inquiry and free expression, the exploration of faith to inform vocation and the innovative shaping of the social, economic and cultural progress of our region. Consistently ranked as one of the best values in higher education, Millsaps has been praised by Colleges That Change Lives, The Princeton Review, Forbes Magazine, U.S. News & World Report, The John Templeton Foundation, and The Fiske Guide to Colleges.
