CANTON, GA - Recent Ohio Wesleyan men's indoor and outdoor track and field graduate Trey Theobald (Archbold, OH/Archbold) was named the winner of the Division III Commissioner's Association (D3CA) Region VII Men's Student-Athlete of the Year award, which is sponsored by Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society. Theobald was one of 20 student-athletes, 10 men and 10 women, that were recognized as regional winners of the award, which is in its third year. Theobald and the nine other male regional winners now advance on the ballot for the D3CA Men’s Sport Student-Athlete of the Year, which will be announced next month.
Theobald established himself as one of the top javelin throwers in Division III throughout his career. He was named a First-Team All-American in both 2024 and 2025, finishing as the national runner-up at the 2024 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a mark of 65.07 meters (213' 6") and placing fourth in 2025, where he broke the Ohio Wesleyan program record with a throw of 65.89 meters (216' 2"). A consistent performer at the conference level, Theobald claimed the 2025 NCAC javelin title and earned All-NCAC honors in 2023, 2024, and 2025, while he and his teammates captured all-conference honors in the 4x100-meter relay in 2022. He was also a three-time All-Great Lakes Region selection. Theobald's leadership helped the OWU men's javelin corps grow to 7 student-athletes this season, with the Bishops ranking seventh in the final 2025 USTFCCCA event-squad rankings.
In the classroom, Theobald graduated with a 3.96 cumulative GPA as a biochemistry and pre-medicine major and biology minor. He was a 2025 Phi Beta Kappa Academic Honor Society inductee, a 2024 and 2025 College Sports Communicators (CSC) First-Team Academic All-American, and was a CSC Academic All-District and United States Track and Field Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic honoree in 2023, 2024, and 2025. He also received the Hall Fellowship in Chemistry, was named a Schafer Chemistry Scholar, and was honored with the Second-Year Chemistry Major Faculty Prize. Theobald engaged in advanced undergraduate research through summer programs at Vanderbilt University and the University of Michigan. At Vanderbilt’s VINSE lab, he worked on developing a method to detect medication-induced neurotoxicity on fetal brain development using cerebral organoids. At Michigan, he investigated the energetic stabilities of Rituxan and Ruxience. During his time at OWU, he also completed a directed reading in oligonucleotide biosynthesis.
On campus and in the broader community, Theobald made contributions through service and leadership. He served as President and Treasurer of the OWU Pre-Health Club, leading initiatives that enabled over 50 students to receive Basic Life Support (BLS) certification. As a teaching assistant and tutor in general and organic chemistry labs, he emphasized both technical instruction and academic confidence-building. Off campus, Theobald volunteered in multiple departments at the Fulton County Health Center, gaining invaluable clinical exposure at a critical access hospital. He also contributed to programs like OWU’s Bishop Games and served as a Summer Splash swim coach, reflecting a deep commitment to mentorship and public health education.
Conferences were permitted to submit two nominations for each award if at least one of the nominations was an international student or an ethnic minority. Graduating seniors were the only student-athletes eligible for this award. Selection criteria for the awards included considerations based on academic achievement, athletics excellence, service and leadership and a personal statement submitted by each nominee.
Voting was conducted by the commissioners within each of the ten regions, with the top male and female honoree recognized as finalists for the Awards Committee to select the Division III Commissioner’s Association Men’s Sport and Women’s Sport Student-Athlete of the Year.