ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Lewis Gray and Ben Haugh of the Navy men's rugby team were selected as nominees for the 2023 Rudy Scholz Award. The award is presented annually by the Washington Athletic Club to the top men's college rugby player in the country.

Gray and Haugh are among 15 players nominated for the accolade. The list will be narrowed down to four finalists by a panel of experts. The winner will be chosen by a public vote. The recipient will be presented the award at a gala event hosted by the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle, Wash., on June 10.

"It is an honor and just a reward to have two Navy rugby players nominated for the Rudy Schulz Award. We sincerely hope one of our nominees can follow in the footsteps of previous Rudy Schulz recipient, Conor McNerney, captain of our 2018 team," said director of rugby Gavin Hickie.

Gray has been a scoring machine during Navy's undefeated season. The senior leads Navy in tries scored (16), conversion kicks (30) and points scored (158). He's also tied with Roanin Krieger as the team leader in penalty kicks with six.

Gray was named First Team All-Rugby East after he finished as the top scorer in the conference during the fall season. He led the league with 25 conversion kicks and finished third in tries scored with eight. Gray was the only player in Rugby East play to score at least 100 points in the fall (108). 

"I believe Lewis is the best collegiate player in the country this year," added Hickie. "He has been the heartbeat of our team and his consistent performances have been key to our team's success. He sets a very high bar for himself and our team daily."

Haugh is Navy's second-best try scorer with 13 tries and ranks third on the team in scoring with 65 points this season. 

The junior also earned first-team distinction from Rugby East. He finished second in the conference with nine tries scored and 10th in scoring with 45 points in league action. 

"Ben has been part of a well-functioning backrow and has had some big performances during the season," noted Hickie. "His ball carrying and defense has been impressive and he continues to develop into a dangerous player for us."

Gray or Haugh look to become the first Mid to win the award since Connor McNerney in 2018.

More on Rudy Scholz
Rudy Scholz was a scrum half for the United States National Rugby Team that won the gold medals at the 1920 Antwerp Olympic Games and 1924 Paris Olympic Games. He also was commissioned a 2nd Lt. in the U.S. Army and served in both world wars. He would go on to serve as the Secretary for the Northern California Rugby Association while continuing to play professional rugby. He played his final game at 83-years-old, making him the oldest player ever to play competitive rugby. The award for the nation's best men's rugby player was named after him in 2015. 

2023 Rudy Scholz Award Nominees
EJ Freeman, Arizona
Tiaan Mosconi, Army
Ollie Corbett, Brown
Taysan Hammer, BYU
Wyatt Parry, BYU
Max Schumacher, California
Alex Null, Davenport
Isaiah Kruse, Fresno State
Peyton Wall, Indiana
Orrin Bizer, Life
Nic Hardrict II, Lindenwood
Lewis Gray, Navy
Ben Haugh, Navy
Sean Moran, Notre Dame
Joe Marchant, Saint Mary's

Rudy Scholz Award Winners
2016: Dylan Audsley, Saint Mary's
2017: Bryce Campbell, Indiana
2018: Connor McNerney, Navy
2019: Harley Wheeler, Life
2020: Payton Telea-Ilalio, Saint Mary's
2021: Emmanuel Albert, Lindenwood
2022: Larry Williams, Army