June 18, 2025
HELENA, Mont. – Dr. Scott Crawford, the Frontier Conference’s commissioner, is proud to announce the conference nominees to the NAIA national awards Wednesday. There are two national awards, the A.O. Duer and the Emil S. Liston Awards. One female and one male nominee are selected to each award.
The NAIA national awards winners will be announced on Sept. 15.
A.O. Duer Scholarship Award, presented by Daktronics, is named in honor of the NAIA’s former executive secretary who served the association for 26 years. This award has been annually presented since 1967 to a male and female junior student-athlete in any sport who has excelled in scholarship, character, and citizenship.
Emma Woods – Montana Tech Women’s Golf – A.O. Duer Award (Female Nominee)
Woods was named to the Frontier/Cal Pack NAIA Qualifier All-Tournament Team for the Orediggers. She finished third in the NAIA’s Unaffiliated Frontier/Cal-Pac Conference qualifying tournament. She also won the Columbia Basin Invitational tournament during the 2024-25 season.
Woods earned the 2023 Frontier Conference Freshman of the Year Award, as well as the First Team All-Conference recipient.
She is an active member of the SAAC at Montana Tech and their many community service endeavors included ‘Walk to School with the Orediggers’, Trick-or-Treat for Cans, and the Red Cross Blood Drive.
Woods majors in biological sciences and currently holds a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.88 at Montana Tech. She recently was named to the College Sports Communicators Women’s Golf Academic All-District Team.
Jace Fitzgerald – Montana Western Football – A.O. Duer Award (Male Nominee)
Fitzgerald, a soon to be senior student-athlete at Montana Western, maintains an impressive 3.95 cumulative GPA while majoring in business administration. He is a member of Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society, and has earned multiple academic distinctions including CSC Academic All-District, Daktronics Scholar-Athlete, and Frontier Conference Academic All-Conference honors.
His commitment to academic success is unwavering and serves as a model for peers within the Montana Western community. On the field, Fitzgerald is equally impressive. As a linebacker for the Bulldogs, he started all 12 games during the 2024 season. His performance earned him First Team All-Conference honors in the Frontier Conference after recording 81 total tackles, including 40 solo tackles, 9 tackles for loss, and 4.5 sacks.
He also contributed 6 pass breakups, helping to anchor one of the top defenses in the league. He finished the season ranked 10
th in total tackles across the entire Frontier Conference.
Beyond his achievements in the classroom and on the field, Fitzgerald is a dedicated and selfless leader in the community. He regularly volunteers at youth camps hosted by Montana Western and serves as a volunteer youth coach in basketball, baseball, and football.
His passion for mentorship and youth development is further seen through his work with “Hook a Kid on Golf,” a local Dillon program where he teaches young people the fundamentals of golf and encourages lifelong healthy habits. In recognition of his character and leadership, he was recently chosen to wear Montana Western Football’s legacy #18 jersey for his senior season. This jersey is awarded annually to the student athlete who best represents the legacy of M.J. Simkins, a symbol of integrity, dedication, and selfless service both on and off the field.
The Emil S. Liston Award, presented by Daktronics, is named in honor of the NAIA’s first executive secretary and the prime mover behind the men’s basketball tournament. The award has been presented annually since 1950 to one junior men’s and women’s basketball player who has shown high athletic and scholastic achievement.
Willa Albrecht – Carroll Women’s Basketball – Emil S. Liston Award (Female Nominee)
Albrecht was named to the Frontier Women’s Basketball All-Conference First Team for the Fighting Saints. She was second in the conference in rebounds and points.
She led the Frontier Conference in free throw percentage and 18
th in the NAIA in free-throw percentage.
Albrecht was named the league Women’s Basketball Player-of-the-Week six times during the 2024-25 season.
She majors in biology at Carroll and maintains a cumulative GPA of 3.71.
Ryan Chavez – Providence Men’s Basketball – Emil S. Liston Award (Male Nominee)
Chavez started 27 games for the Argos. He averaged nine points per game. He transferred to Providence with a 2.2 grade point average and improved to 3.2 grade point average in his first semester and 3.7 GPA in the second semester.