LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Southeastern Conference announced the male and female Brad Davis Community Service Award Winners – recipients that also will receive a $7,500 post-graduate scholarship provided by the SEC – for each of its 16 member institutions on Thursday. This year, the University of Kentucky is represented by Ella Emmert of softball and Ryan Merani from men’s swimming and diving.
The SEC Community Service Post-Graduate Scholarship is named for former Associate Commissioner Brad Davis. Davis succumbed to cancer on March 2, 2006. He had been a member of the SEC staff since 1988, first serving as an assistant commissioner until he was promoted to associate commissioner in 1994.
Emmert, a Lexington, Kentucky, native, serves as the UK Athletics Student-Athlete Advisory Committee President. Emmert, who has logged more than 192 service hours in her college career, is also heavily involved with several faith-based organizations, including Fellowship of Christian Athletes and God’s Pantry. With God’s Pantry, she helps pack lunches for underserved children in the community and delivers them to local elementary and middle schools in the area.
Most outstanding this season, she organized and led a department-wide shoe drive for Soles4Souls. She placed bins throughout athletic facilities and on campus, encouraging folks to donate. She then coordinated logistics to have the shoe donations shipped and distributed.
On the field, Emmert earned the starting catcher spot in 2026. She has played as the Wildcats’ primary catcher in 40 of the 47 games, hitting .233 on the season with 23 hits and 10 runs scored. Emmert hit the first three home runs of her five-year college career this season, with her first coming against Northern Illinois in the Blues City Classic hosted by Memphis.
The Wildcat, who has been voted a three-time team captain (2024, 2025, 2026), boasts a 3.69 grade-point average and is set to graduate with a degree in Human Health Science in May. She has been accepted into Johns Hopkins University, where she will pursue a Master’s of Science in Organizational Leadership.
From Timonium, Maryland, Ryan Merani represents the swimming and diving program. The senior, who has clocked more than 132 hours of community service, has worked tirelessly both in and out of the pool as evident by being inducted into the Frank G. Ham Society of Character. Like Emmert, he often spends time with FCA and God’s Pantry, while also serving numerous other causes and organizations in Central Kentucky.
In the pool, Merani primarily competed in butterfly and IM. The Wildcat, who was named a team captain in 2026, etched his name into the record book during his college career at Kentucky. He currently holds three program records, along with being a three-time NCAA Qualifier, SEC Championship A-Finalist, and Olympic Trials Qualifier.
Merani will graduate with a degree in Health Promotion in May, and he plans to remain in Lexington and attend the University of Kentucky to get a Master’s degree in Sports and Exercise Psychology.
Emmert and Merani are both nominees for the male and female Brad Davis Community Service Leaders of the Year awards, which will be announced later in May. The overall winners will receive $10,000.
