INDIANAPOLIS – Indianapolis graduate student swimmer Celina Schmidt, as well as Maryville redshirt-senior wrestler Cole Ritter and UIndy senior football player Ryne Buttz, earned the 2026 Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) Richard F. Scharf Paragon Award as the league's female and co-male athletes of the year, the Conference office announced Tuesday.

The awards are bestowed annually by the GLVC to one male and one female student-athlete who display academic excellence, athletic ability and achievement, character, and leadership. This year, for the fourth time in league history, there was a tie in voting for the men's award. The accolade is named in honor of the former GLVC Commissioner, as well as coach and director of athletics at Saint Joseph's College.
 
Schmidt, Ritter, and Buttz will be formally recognized Tuesday, May 19, at the GLVC Awards Reception in Brentwood, Missouri.
 
Schmidt is the eighth female student-athlete from Indianapolis to win the GLVC's most prestigious honor, while she and Buttz became the 13th and 14th Greyhounds overall to receive the award.
 
During her four-year career at UIndy, Schmidt established herself as one of the top swimmers in program history, collecting 23 All-America (19 First Team) honors, including two national titles and multiple runner-up finishes. She was the 2024 Division II national champion in the 100 and 200 breaststroke and recorded second-place performances in the 200 IM (2024) and 400 IM (2026) and as part of the 200 and 400 medley relay teams (2023). Schmidt holds the most GLVC Swimmer of the Week accolades in league history with eight and helped UIndy to two conference championships (2023, 2026) and a quartet of top-six national finishes, highlighted by placing runner up to round out her freshman season (2023). In GLVC Championship competition, she collected six gold medals and one silver in 2026 alone, while capturing gold for one event in both 2023 (200 medley relay) and 2024 (200 breast). Schmidt also holds the school records in three events, sits top 10 in four other events, and is tied for the most All-American First Team honors in program history.
 
In the classroom, Schmidt was equally dominant, carrying a 3.82 GPA into her final semester in pursuit of a master's degree in business administration. She received Academic All-GLVC honors four times, CSCAA Scholar All-America First Team four times, and CSC Academic All-American three times (including two First Team selections). The Berlin, Germany native also appeared on the Dean's List twice.
 
UIndy professor Pam Howard had this to say about Schmidt: "Celina represents the type of student-athlete who not only excels individually but also positively influences those around her. She is an excellent representative of the University of Indianapolis and embodies the academic excellence, leadership, and character that this award celebrates."
 
Ritter is the second male student-athlete from Maryville to garner the GLVC's premier accolade, joining fellow wrestler Nate Rodriguez who won in 2016-17.
 
A four-year starter for the Maryville men's wrestling team, Ritter claimed the Division II 174-lb national title in 2025 and earned All-America honors thrice. He secured All-GLVC honors four times while helping the Saints to a GLVC title in 2024 and ninth-place finish at DII Nationals in 2025. The Adrian, Missouri product completed his career with a 110-40 record, highlighted by his 35-7 campaign in 2025 that included 21 victories with bonus points. Ritter also served as team captain for two years.
 
While pursuing his bachelor's and master's degree in business administration, Ritter was named to the Academic All-GLVC and National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Academic All-America teams four times (2023-26). He carried a 3.867 GPA into his final semester in the MBA program. Outside the classroom, Ritter has volunteered multiple times at the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Foundation, along with attending the Athletic Prevention Programming and Leadership Education (APPLE) conference – the premier national conference designed to prevent substance misuse and promote health within college athletics.
 
Maryville faculty athletics representative Michael Kiener said, "Mr. Ritter is a person who leads by example and is a perfect representation of an NCAA Division II student-athlete. He is well-liked by his peers and has tremendous dedication to his academics and his sport."
 
Buttz is the sixth male from UIndy to claim the GLVC's top student-athlete honor, as he and Schmidt become the 13th and 14th Greyhounds overall to collect the accolade.
 
A four-year starter for the UIndy football team, Buttz was an anchor for the Greyhounds' offensive line. He is one of eight players in program history to garner four consecutive All-GLVC nods, collecting First Team honors in 2023, 2024, and 2025 and Second Team recognition in 2022. Buttz was named team captain for his senior season and earned numerous national honors, including American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) All-America First Team, D2Football.com Elite 100 First Team, College Football Network All-America First Team, and D2CCA All-America Second Team. He helped lead UIndy to four-straight GLVC championships and NCAA Division II playoff appearances, finishing his career with an impressive 28-1 conference record and 41 consecutive starts. During that span, the Greyhounds consistently ranked among the nation's best in scoring offense, total offense, and efficiency metrics, including finishing second in Division II in both scoring and total offense in 2025.

Academically, Buttz excelled in the classroom where he carried a 3.781 GPA in exercise science. The 2025 CSC Academic All-America First Team honoree was also honored with the GLVC Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year award (2025), CSC Academic All-District recognition (2024-25), and garnered membership to the National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society in 2025. Buttz was active in service and community engagement throughout his collegiate career, volunteering with the football program for Special Olympics events in 2023, 2024, and 2025. He contributed time to local youth education initiatives, including visiting an elementary school twice to read to students and assisting at another school's end-of-year field day. Buttz also regularly volunteered at his home church, serving as a greeter and usher, helping in the children's center, and assisting with coffee service.
 
UIndy offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Thomas Gerhard showed high praise for Buttz: "Ryne, without reservation, has made a lasting impact on our program and will be greatly missed within our locker room and on campus. He is one of the most focused, driven, and dependable student-athletes I have been around and had the privilege of coaching."