DAVIS, Calif. – UC Davis brought home hardware at the 2022 Black Student-Athlete Summit, an annual conference made up of student-athletes, scholars, and athletics professionals from across the country.
 
The Aggies was one of four universities to win a 2022 Black Student-Athlete Organization of the Year Award during the three-day event hosted by Rice University in Houston, Texas.
 
"The Black Student-Athlete Summit (BSAS) is truly a transformational experience for our student-athletes, as they are able to learn, grow community, and be inspired throughout the event," said Courtney Randall, the Associate Athletics Director for Diversity Equity and Inclusion. "This year was particularly special for us, as our Coalition for African Diaspora Student-Athlete (CADSA) organization was recognized as Black Student-Athlete Organization of the Year. We plan to cultivate leadership amongst our student-athletes by continuing to provide them with experiential learning opportunities, like the Black Student-Athlete Summit."
 
Current UC Davis student-athletes, Emmanuel Doherty and Teddye Buchanan accepted the award alongside former Aggie sprinter Mikaela Adolphus.
 
"For UC Davis to receive recognition at such a prestigious event really means a lot for the school," Buchanan said. To be able to be recognized especially as a lesser known athletics program compared to a lot of the schools there was great for us."
 
Said Doherty, "It was really nice to receive recognition for the efforts of Black student-athletes on campus."
 
Over the course of the three days at Rice University, Doherty and Buchanan connected with student-athletes from across the country through presentations, breakout sessions and networking socials.  
 
"It was a whole new world. There's a bunch of different types of people, personalities, and cultures," Doherty said. "The event was a great experience for me to meet a lot of Black athletes who were at other notable schools. We were just talking about our value as athletes and building our network. We also talked about how to optimize our personal brands away from the field.
 
For Buchanan, the event was eye-opening as he made several connections with Black student-athletes from all over.
 
"I was really grateful for UC Davis athletics and the BSAS for allowing us this opportunity," Buchanan said. "It's an opportunity I thought I never would have. The number of connections I made over the three days were really beneficial. To be in a space with a bunch of college athletes really showed me where I am relative to them. It pushed me to want to do more."
 
Doherty, a senior, plans to play one more season in the fall and pursue a career in the medical field after graduation.
 
"My time playing soccer as an Aggie has been absolutely amazing," Doherty said. "While I've been in Davis, our team has been strong. I love the culture our team has and the brotherhood and comradery our teammates bring."
 
Buchanan, a junior, has been a solid weak-side linebacker for the Aggie defense and a key leader in the locker room.
 
"It's has been an awesome experience," Buchanan said. "I'm starting to feel comfortable understanding my role and evolving as a leader and a football player."
 
While winning an award is a nice touch, Adolphus is more appreciative of the growth.
 
"It's one thing to be recognized for the work we're doing on campus and elsewhere but it's another to see what others are doing and collaborating with them live," Adolphus said. "I hope that UC Davis is able to bring more student-athletes so they can have this experience because it helps them bring back what they've learned to campus. I'm proud of what UC Davis has done and how our legacy is being carried out."
 
For more information about the Black Student-Athlete Summit, visit https://www.bsasummit.org/.