RALEIGH, NC -- For the second consecutive season, UVA Wise guard Jalie Ruehling has been named a recipient of the Kay Yow Servant Leader Award. She is one of five repeat winners of the award, which was created in 2024, and the only one in the NCAA Division II ranks.

Ruehling returns for her junior season as the most experienced player on the squad as she has appeared in 57 games, where she averaged 3.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists a game.

The Coalmont, Tennessee, native was one of the original cohort of 26 (including four South Atlantic Conference players) to earn the award.

This season the field was expanded to 65. Ruehling joins Ella Brow (Baylor), Flau'Jae Johnson (LSU), Charlisse Leger-Walker (UCLA), and Addison Martin (Illinois State) as repeat winners of the award.

Four other SAC players join Ruehling on this year's team, including Breanna Yarber (Emory & Henry), Kamari Thompson (Coker), and Mary Kate Kent (Newberry). Other players from Virginia schools include Virginia's Kymora Johnson and Virginia Tech's Mackenie Nelson.

The 2025-26 Servant Leader Class will be celebrated during a special event at the end of the season, where for the first time the Fund will also name a Servant Leader of the Year. This new recognition will honor one student-athlete whose impact and leadership stand out among this year's honorees.

Members of the Class of 2025-26 are making an impact well beyond the basketball court. Some have launched community initiatives to support cancer patients and their families, while others are mentoring young girls in sport or raising funds for research in honor of loved ones. Many are using their platform as athletes to bring attention to underserved communities in need of better access to cancer care. Collectively, they represent the spirit of service and leadership that defined Coach Yow's life and legacy.

The Kay Yow Cancer Fund was founded in honor of former North Carolina State head coach Kay Yow, who had a 22-year battle with breast cancer before passing away in 2009. She helped set up the fund in 2007 to support advanced research, extend the quality of life for those battling cancer, serve the underserved, and unite people. The name Yow might be familiar to people around the Southwest Virginia and upper East Tennessee areas as her sister Debbie coached at Kentucky, Florida, and Maryland; and another sister, Susan, coached in the South Atlantic Conference at Queens University of Charlotte for six seasons as well as coaching at ETSU for four seasons.

As part of the Cancer Fund's outreach, the Kay Yow Servant Leader Award was created in 2024 to honor student-athletes who best embody the characteristics of Coach Kay Yow – people with a servant's spirit and a commitment to selfless leadership both on and off the court and athletic field. As defined by the program's website, "Recipients of the Servant Leader Award are people of great character who put the needs of others before their own, who uplift others, and who do it with grace and humility. They are nominated by their coach, and are people who exemplify Coach Yow's spirit and who reflect her resolve, grace, generosity, and servant's heart. Winners display courage and strength, and their first response is to give to others. They are people who have, or will make an impact in the fight against cancer – improving lives and giving hope."

Recipients may be recognized by the patch they wear on their uniform the year they win the award.

Ruehling and the rest of the Highland Cavalier Squad will open the 2025-26 season Nov. 14-15 in Bluffton, South Carolina. They take on the Georgia Southwestern State Hurricanes Friday at 7:30 p.m., followed by a showdown with the Sand Sharks of USC Beaufort Saturday at 7:30 p.m. This will be the first time UVA Wise has faced either school. USC Beaufort is in their third season of competition, having started their program in 2023.

There is a tie, however, with GSW as the Hurricanes are in their second season under Missy Tiber, who coached at Tusculum from 2005-09. While Tiber's Tusculum teams never played UVA Wise during her tenure, in a game at Concord on Nov. 28, 2006, Concord had a guard that had 13 points, 6 rebounds, and 14 assists.in a 97-83 win over the Pioneers. That guard? Jamie Cluesman.  

Links to both games for video and live stats can be found at www.uvawisecavs.com.https://uvawisecavs.com/index.aspx