FERRUM, Va. -- Conference Carolinas has unveiled its 2025-26 fall Team Messick Sportsmanship Award winners, and Ferrum College earned was honored with the award in women's basketball. This is Ferrum's second Messick Award, including last fall in football.

The Team Messick Sportsmanship Awards are named after John D. Messick, who was the President of former conference member East Carolina University from 1947-59. Messick truly championed sportsmanship and even wrote a book entitled, "Personality and Character Development."

The Conference Carolinas Directors of Athletics implemented the process by which the Conference Carolinas Messick Sportsmanship Awards are determined. A student-athlete and coach from each institution vote separately upon the sportsmanship of all conference competitors. Each institution then submits those votes to the conference office where the averages are then calculated to decide the winner for each conference-sponsored sport.

Ferrum closed out the 2025 women's basketball season at 10-20 overall under second-year Head Coach Bryan Harvey. The Panthers were 7-13 in Conference Carolinas play. The Panthers qualified for the Conference Carolinas Tournament as the #11 seed, beating #8 UNC Pembroke in the first round. Ferrum then lost to #5 Lees-McRae College, who went on to win the tournament and qualified for the NCAA Div. II Women's Basketball Tournament. Earlier in the year, Harvey's team lost in overtime to Lees-McRae.

Belmont Abbey College won three of the seven winter sports Messick Awards. In addition to the individual sport winners, the league office also released the current Messick standings which are used as part of the calculation in awarding the Body, Mind & Soul Dr. Alan Patterson Cup at the annual spring meetings.

2025-26 Fall Messick Award Winners
Men's Cross Country: Belmont Abbey
Women's Cross Country: Belmont Abbey
Football: Ferrum
Men's Soccer: Erskine
Women's Soccer: Belmont Abbey
Women's Volleyball: Belmont Abbey

2025-26 Winter Messick Award Winners
Men's Basketball: North Greenville
Women's Basketball: Ferrum
Men's Indoor Track & Field: Belmont Abbey
Women's Indoor Track & Field: Belmont Abbey
Men's Swimming & Diving: King
Women's Swimming & Diving: UNC Pembroke
Men's Wrestling: Belmont Abbey