Two Ohio Students Win Arthur Ashe Award!

The 2023 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar of the Year was announced in the Spring and many didn’t realize both recipients were from Ohio schools!

 

Female Arthur Ashe winner

 

Camber Hayes, a junior from Miami University, is the first female student-athlete from Miami AND the MAC to win this award. A biology/pre-med major with a 4.0 GPA, Ms. Hayes is a two-time Academic All-MAC soccer player. Camber, as captain, helped guide her Redhawks squad to a top-four conference finish.

 

🚨 NATIONAL AWARD ALERT 🚨

Miami women's soccer student-athlete Camber Hayes has been named the 2023 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar of the Year by Diverse: Issues In Higher Education!

🗒: https://t.co/lHTGAsFXCm | #MACtion pic.twitter.com/weCH6xRhgo

— #MACtion (@MACSports) April 5, 2023

 

Male Arthur Ashe winner

 

Lyle Yost, a diver for The Ohio State University, is the men’s recipient for this honor. Lyle is a senior Spanish major who recently became the first Buckeye since 2016 to become a national champion in the one meter springboard.

 

Photo by Peter H Bick

 

Each winner is noted for their grades and athletic success but also for their commitment to helping their community. Camber is active in Athletes in Action, Miami Bridges Program and the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation. The Bridges Program and the Stokes Alliance assist students to attend college from diverse backgrounds and increase diversity on campus.

 

She also continues to work with Feed The Hungry, an organization dedicated to feeding the poor and hungry around the world and helping young boys and girls in their religious faith life.

 

Lyle works with students with disabilities on campus and finds time to participate in Dublin City Schools PATHS program, helping students with their post-high school learning, and coaching a youth diving team, ACES Diving.

 

Lyle’s Story

The 216 is Yost’s home. From Shaker Heights, Lyle sees diving as an opportunity to travel. In an interview his senior year in high school, Yost’s mom, Tina, remarked: “He embraces Cleveland and ‘the 216’ and what all of that means to him.” So for her, it was no surprise he stayed close to home by his selection of Ohio State for diving and academics.

 

In a story for Shaker Life, Lyle shared what he saw as his purpose.

 

“My main goal is to use diving as a tool to travel. In some sports, the payoff for all your years of hard work is the winning, which is great. But for me, it’s incredibly motivating that I work hard at this and then I have the opportunity to go to Cuba, or to Germany, or Ukraine, or Italy. When the hard work pays off and I visit new countries, or try new food or meet new people, that’s the best part about it.”

 

Lyle was a Spanish major at OSU, and it should be no surprise that he wrote his final high school essay for his International Baccalaureate project entirely in Spanish! 

Photo seen on Swimswam.com

 

Lyle loves traveling and the arts, especially painting. But he hopes to continue diving for the US Nationals and the Olympics in 2024. Then hopefully travel abroad. How about this? In your first collegiate event at Texas A&M, Lyle won the one meter springboard competition. Not bad for a young man who started diving at eight years old.

Camber’s Story

As a ninth grader at St John’s College High School in Washington DC, Hayes led her school to the championship game as a freshman student. She won the MVP for the team, but after her only high school season, she decided to focus on her club team.

 

Camber’s family always placed academics over athletics. Reggie and Valerie Hayes, Camber’s parents, told their children that you only go to practices when your school work was completed.

 

“That foundation was carried into high school and into college now, where I know how to manage my time pretty well to get my schoolwork done while competing in soccer,” Camber shared with the Miami Student reporter.

 

Her travel team often would play weekend games in Arizona, North Carolina and Florida, making Hayes’ ability to juggle grades and soccer second nature. Reggie noted this.

 

“By the time finals rolls around, she knows what’s the minimum grade she needs to get an A… She’s a very competitive student…[but] we didn’t have an academic concern that she wasn’t doing her work.”

 

When it came to college searching, Camber and her family knew that academics came first. “My degree will last longer [than my soccer career.]”

Photo by Miami Athletics | The Miami Student

 

Hayes plans on veterinarian school in her future. Yet the junior’s coach also believes she has the ability to play professionally. 

 

“I don’t think her career is done,” Sirmans said. “Obviously, she’s got a senior year here. If Camber wants to play, I think she can play.”

 

Congratulations to two Ohio collegians on their prestigious award and their commitment to their communities! 

 

The Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars

 

2023 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars must maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.5, be at least a sophomore academically, and be active on their campuses or in their communities. Each school nominates a student for this.

Over 1,000 scholar athletes are nominated yearly. The periodical/website, Diverse: Issues In Higher Education chooses the Arthur Ashe Jr. Male and Female Sports Scholars of the Year. The winners are these men and women who best exemplify the standards of scholarship, athleticism, and humanitarianism.

Much of the information and photos came from Miami and Ohio State’s student newspapers, The Miami Student, and The Lantern, respectively. Please enjoy the many student reporters and photographers who do great work every year for your alma mater.

Please follow me on X @Petrorock44