Reaching those heights and handling the pressure are reasons Kadie and Amber Rolfzen are named the 2016 winners of the Fred Ware Award, presented Sunday for the 36th time by The World-Herald.
The Ware Award goes annually to the four-year college athlete in Nebraska who, in the judgment of the newspaper’s editors, made the most significant achievement in sports while representing the best traditions of his or her institution. The late Fred Ware organized The World-Herald sports department and served as sports editor from 1924 to 1942, and later was the newspaper’s managing editor and a member of its board of directors.
In 33 of the previous 35 years, the Ware Award went to one student-athlete. The exceptions were 1994, when it was split between Nebraska football player Trev Alberts and Creighton soccer player Keith DeFini; and 1990, when it went to NU football player Gerry Gdowski and track athlete Sammie Resh Gdowski, who had married the prior summer.
It seems appropriate that the Rolfzens share the honor in 2016, based not only on what they’ve accomplished but how they have pushed and helped each other along the way.
