MILWAUKEE, Wis. (naccsports.org) --- The Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) has announced its Winter/Spring 2026 recipients of the NACC FAR Award.
The award was developed by the NACC's Faculty Athletics Representatives (FARs) in order to recognize outstanding achievements and commitment in three essential areas - academic performance, contribution to athletics, and service to the campus community. Additionally, it recognizes the perseverance and determination demonstrated in the pursuit of success in those endeavors.
The honor builds upon the existing NACC academic awards program, which includes the G. Steven Larson Student-Athletes of the Year and the NACC Scholar-Athlete Awards. The former is selected by the NACC's senior woman administrators, while the latter is determined by grade-point average alone.
All nominees are taken under consideration by a subcommittee of the conference's FARs, which determines the winners.
A total of 10 individuals will be recognized each academic year with five honorees representing fall sports being announced during the spring, with a further five honorees representing winter and spring sports slated to be announced upon the completion of the academic year.
The five recipients for the Winter/Spring 2026 semester are:
- Kylee Doherty, Edgewood University, women's track and field
- Christina Eloe, Edgewood University, women's lacrosse
- Jessa Alderman, Milwaukee School of Engineering, women's track and field
- Kolby Dax, Milwaukee School of Engineering, men's track and field
- Mason Dopirak, Milwaukee School of Engineering, men's basketball
Kylee Doherty
Institution: Edgewood University
Sport: Women's Track and Field
Hometown: Cross Plains, Wis.
Majors: Education and History
Doherty capped her Edgewood career with a four all-America honors in total, earning first-team honors with an eighth-place national meet finish in the discus throw in 2026 and second-team honors in the discus throw in 2024 (13th) and 2025 (14th) and the javelin throw in 2026 (11th). She was also a four-time NACC champion, winning three consecutive titles in the discus throw (2024-26) and the 2026 title in the javelin. Doherty also recorded top-three finishes in the 2025 indoor shot put (second) and 2025 javelin throw (third).
She won the discus throw (45.17m; 148-2) and javelin throw (42.22m; 138-6) at the 2026 NACC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, setting new championship marks in both events. Doherty also owns the NACC all-time mark in the javelin with a throw of 44.21 meters (145-0) at the 2026 UW-Whitewater Drake Alternative and is the Edgewood record holder in the shot put and weight throw indoors and the shot put, discus throw, and javelin throw outdoors.
Outside of Edgewood, Doherty made a commitment to serving younger students in the community as both a volunteer middle school volleyball coach and a substitute teacher. Combined with her role as a captain on Edgewood's track and field team, Doherty has shown a dedication to creating supportive, inclusive, and respectful environments for everyone with whom she has an interaction.
As a result of her work in the classroom, Doherty - an education and history major - has been named NACC Scholar-Athlete and College Sports Communicators Academic All-District three times each (2024, 2025, 2026), and was a USTFCCCA All-Academic Team honoree in 2024. She was named to the Edgewood University Dean's List five times and graduated summa cum laude in May.
Christina Eloe
Institution: Edgewood University
Sport: Women's Lacrosse
Hometown: Naperville, Ill.
Major: Nursing
Eloe, a midfielder on Edgewood's women's lacrosse squad, started 63 of 66 games during her career, scoring 132 points on 108 goals - including six game-winners - and 24 assists. She also tallied 245 ground balls, 111 caused turnovers and a program record 283 career draw controls. Eloe earned all-conference in each of her final three seasons as an Eagle, sandwiching first-team honors in 2024 and 2026 around a second-team honor in 2025.
A nursing major, Eloe spent time serviing her community as a volunteer at The Beacon - a local homeless shelter - where she worked alongside peers to provide free health screenings, including blood pressure and blood glucose checks. Beyond clinical care, she helped individuals navigate housing opportunities, job applications, and medication management.
Eloe also worked as an anatomy and physiology course coach in Edgewood's Learning Lab, supporting fellow students through challenging coursework and offering encouragement during stessful periods. She served as a trusted peer helping to foster a supportive and inclusive environment by demonstrating a consistent commitment to show up for others.
As a result of her work in the classroom, Eloe has been named a NACC Scholar-Athlete four times and was named Academic All-District® by College Sports Communicators in 2024, 2025, and 2026. She was also named to the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Academic Honor Roll in 2025 and 2026.
Jessa Alderman
Institution: Milwaukee School of Engineering
Sport: Women's Track and Field
Hometown: Janesville, Wis.
Major: Civil Engineering
Alderman, who was named the 2026 NACC Women's Indoor Track and Field Athlete of the Year, won eight NACC individual titles in her career. She won three consecutive crowns in both the indoor and outdoor shot put and adding on indoor weight throw titles in 2024 and 2026. Alderman also finished on the podium on four other occasions in the discus throw (third-2025, second-2026) and hammer throw (second-2025 & 2026). She shared Field Athlete of the Meet at the 2026 NACC Outdoor Championships with teammate Josephine Jacklin.
Alderman capped her career by earning USTFCCCA First Team All-America honors with a fourth-place finish in the shot put at the 2026 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She had previously earned second-team all-America honors with 13th-place finishes in the shot put at both the 2024 and 2026 NCAA Indoor Championships.
Alderman graduates holding three NACC records, all set in 2026. She won the shot put at both the NACC indoor (14.02m; 46-0) and outdoor (14.43m; 47-4 1/4) championships in record fashon. Alderman's throw of 15.09 meters (49-6 1/4) at the UW-La Crosse Uncaged Eagle Open in May set a NACC all-time mark and ended the season as the top throw in NCAA Division III. She also holds MSOE records in the shot put (indoor and outdoor) and weight throw.
On campus, Alderman has served as an MSOE Student Success Ally, assisting students in the area of time management, organization, and developing good study habits. She also took the initiative to create opportunities where they previously did not exist, founding MSOE's Water and Environmental Team (WET). After spending over a year working with faculty and staff to meet requirements and overcome challenges, Alderman served as the orgainzation's initial president with the goal of building something sustaining. One of the group's recent projects involved designing an irrigation system for the gardens of a non-profit organization in the Milwaukee area. She also traveled to Guatemala as a member of a public health brigade to improve the sanitation of a rural community with no access to drinking water.
As a result of her dedication in the classroom, Alderman has already started work on a master's degree in civil engineering with a concentration in environmental and water resources engineering (EWRE) as an early-entry graduate student.
Academically, Alderman has been named to the MSOE Dean's List six times, the last four semesters with High Honors. She was also a three-time College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District® selection (2024, 2025, 2026), a two time United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic Scholar (2024, 2025), and a 2026 inductee into Chi Alpha Sigma (Wisconsin Lambda Chapter).
Kolby Dax
Institution: Milwaukee School of Engineering
Sport: Men's Track and Field
Hometown: Flower Mound, Texas
Major: Computer Engineering
Dax, a senior, finished his career as a three-time all-NACC selection in cross country, pairing a 13th-place finish in 2022 with matching sixth-place finishes in 2023 and 2024. Injuries prevented Dax from competing as a senior. On the track, he was a nine-time point-scorer at the NACC Championships. Dax's top finish at the indoor championships came in 2025 when he placed third in the 5,000-meter run. He also posted finishes of fourth (2023), fifth (2024), and seventh (2026) in the 5K as well as a seventh-place finish in the 3,000 in 2023. Dax made the podium three times in the 10K at the NACC Outdoor Championships, placing second in 2023, and third in 2025 and 2026. He also took seventh in 2024.
In 2026, Dax posted the NACC's top indoor 5K time with a 15:07.58 clocking to win the UW-Whitewater Karl Schlender Invitational in January. He also ranks in the top-five at MSOE all-time in the indoor 5K and outdoor 10K. Dax posted his personal-best time of 31:51.34 in the 10K at the 2025 NACC Championships.
Across the three sports, Dax was a member of eight NACC championship-winning teams - four in cross country (2022-25), and two each in indoor and outdoor track and field (both 2023, 2026). He was also a member of four runner-up squads, taking second at both the indoor and outdoor championships in 2024 and 2025.
Dax has been involved in several service projects during his time at MSOE. He, along with a few other team members, began a team study table for the team during his junior season that provided a platform for upperclassmen to act as tutors for the newcomers. Dax also mentors underclassmen prepping for interviews. Additionally, he has also volunteered at high school during breaks, acting as an assistant coach and mentor figure. In advance of his final two cross country seasons, Dax arranged and hosted a series of informal orientation and icebreaking activities, seeking to build a more cohesive team and a more empowering environment for fellow runners.
Academically, Dax was a two-time College Sports Communicators Academic All-District® selection (2025, 2026), a four-time NACC Scholar-Athlete and a nine-time Dean's List with High Honors recipient (three trimesters, 2022-23; six semesters, 2023-2026).
Mason Dopirak
Institution: Milwaukee School of Engineering
Sport: Men's Basketball
Hometown: Manitowoc, Wis.
Majors: Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
One of only three men's basketball players in conference history to be named to the All-NACC First Team four times (Austin Stueck, MSOE, 2013-16; Collin Kennedy, WLC, 2016-19), Dopirak capped his career with a spectacular senior season. He was named NACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year after helping lead MSOE to a share of its second NACC title overall, and its first since 2019. In the process, Dopirak set a new NACC single-season scoring mark (678 points) behind 23 20-point performances - also a NACC single-season record - and was rewarded with first team all-region/district honors from D3hoops.com and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), a third-team all-America nod from D3hoops.com, and a spot on the NABC All-America Second Team. He was also a finalist for the Jostens Trophy, which is presented annually to the most outstanding NCAA Division III basketball student-athlete.
Dopirak finished his career second on the NACC all-time scoring chart with 2,175 points, just 24 markers shy of the top spot held since 2013 by Lakeland's Jake Schwarz (2,199). He also ranks third on MSOE's NCAA-era scoring chart.
All told, Dopirak was a three-time D3hoops.com All-Region pick, also earning third-team honors as as a sophomore in 2024 and second-team honors as a junior in 2025. He was also named to the NABC All-District second team in 2025.
In addition to maintaining a 4.0 grade-point average, Dopirak actively pursued a range of research opportunities at MSOE. Two research projects were accepted for publication in 2025, while a third was under review as the Spring 2026 semester drew to a close. Additionally, he volunteered at the Orthopaedic Rehab Clinic at Froedert Hospital.
Around campus, Dopirak volunteered at Kinship Community Food Center, a local food pantry in Milwaukee. He also launched MSOE's chapter of Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), serving in a leadership role as president since Fall 2024. Dopirak's goal in starting the chapter was to provide MSOE students with comprehensive exposure to the medical field, exposure they might not have otherwise had.
A four-time NACC Scholar-Athlete, Dopirak was also to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District® Team and the NABC Honors Court in 2025 and 2026, and, as a senior, was named singled out by CSC as the 2025-26 Division III Men's Basketball Academic All-America® Team Member of the Year. After being named to the MSOE Honors List his first two quarters, he was named to the MSOE Dean's List with High Honors in each of his final seven terms (one quarter, six semesters)