St. Henry senior Alexis Buschur comes up with a steal during the Redskins’ Division VI state title win over Canton Central Catholic. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
A pair of multi-sport and multi-impact athletes have been selected as their school’s first Press Pros MAC Scholar-Athlete Award winners in eight years…St. Henry’s Alexis Buschur, and Marion Local’s Brayden Mescher.
For all the historic success of St. Henry and Marion Local high schools, both on the field and in the classroom, one might think it ironic that each is represented this year for the first time in nearly a decade, claiming the Press Pros male and female Scholar-Athlete Sponsors’ Scholarship award for 2025-’26.
The Mr. Shoppe proudly sponsors the best in area high school sports on Press Pros Magazine.com.
But while time does fly it cannot ignore the athletic, academic, and leadership qualities of St. Henry’s Alexis Buschur…and Marion Local’s Brayden Mescher…this year’s winners of the Stan Wilker Memorial Scholarship, supported by the sponsors of MAC sports on Press Pros Magazine.com.
The female recipient is St. Henry senior Alexis Buschur, who will graduate this spring with GPA of 4.0, a three-sport participant, and a member of the Redskins’ 2026 Division VI State Champions in girls basketball. In addition to basketball, Buschur also played volleyball (Div. VI state runner-up) and softball.
Buschur and the Redskins made it to the Division VI state championship game, finishing as runners-up to Newark Catholic.
Her post-graduate plans are to attend Ohio State University this fall and major in Biology. But her impact in volleyball, basketball and softball, along with numerous community service activities, more than highlights her commitment to her teammates and the community when leadership is required.
Her success in basketball and softball seemed to come naturally, but her desire to excel in everything caused her angst in another popular St. Henry sport…volleyball.
“While basketball put me in the spotlight, volleyball kept me in the shadows,” she wrote in her personal essay. “I had to play JV for three years. standing on the other side of where I wanted to be. It was heartbreaking, and there were many bus rides home filled with doubt and questions I couldn’t answer. It became my greatest challenge, because for the first time effort didn’t guarantee results. I learned that resilience isn’t built when things go right. Resilience comes when things don’t go right. And I refused to let disappointment define me.”
It was Buschur who also expressed in a post-game press conference last fall, following the Redskins volleyball loss to Newark Catholic in the championship match, “It sucks to lose. But all we can do is look back at it and prepare to get better for the next season (basketball). And yes, we fell short. But there’s more opportunity this year to get stuff done.”
Four months later Buschur’s words came true, as the #1-ranked Redskins girls swept through to the Division VI basketball title, despite injuries to two valued teammates who missed playing in the championship game. Reminded of her low moment in volleyball, she just smiled, and nodded. Resilience isn’t built when things go right.
Concluding her personal essay, she writes, “I value every effort and unseen struggle.”
Lefeld Welding Supplies proudly sponsors high school sports and the Ohio State Buckeyes on Press Pros Magazine.com.
This year’s male recipient is hardly a surprise, as it would be hard to do more than Marion Local’s Brayden Mescher did in his four years of football (three consecutive Division VII titles) and basketball, where Mescher led the Flyers to back-to-back appearances in the Division VI title game, finishing second both times to Monroe Central and Berlin Hiland, respectively.
In addition, Mescher captained both teams, was the MAC Defensive Player of The Year in football, 1st Team All-Ohio in football, and the Division VII Defensive Player of The Year in Division VII football.
Brayden Mescher led Marion Local to the Division VI OHSAA title game in basketball in back-to-back seasons.
In basketball Mescher was recognized as 1st Team All-MAC, 1st Team All District and Regional, and 2nd Team All-State.
He graduates this spring with a 3.96 GPA, and his post-graduate plans are to attend Columbus State University in the fall to study Industrial Engineering Technology.
Since 2013, the personal essay portion of the Scholar/Athlete application has become increasingly important because it allows individuals to become introspective about themselves and their personal motivation. Mescher’s was particularly strong, as he wrote about his older brother Tyler, whose winning free throws claimed the 2018 Division IV basketball title for Marion Local in an overtime win against Cornerstone Christian. Tragically, Tyler Mescher passed away, unexpectedly, in 2022.
“Tyler was my greatest athletic influence,” writes Mescher. “Even though he’s not here now, his impact goes far beyond the time we spent together. What made him so influential was not his talent, he just never wanted to be average in anything he did. He wanted to reach a higher level every day. Since his passing I carry his memory with me in every game I play. My motivation has become stronger. I want him to be proud of my effort every day, because I know he wouldn’t care about my being good enough. He would care about the effort and intensity I bring to every practice and game. His influence is permanent on the person I continue to become.”
Recipients’ applications are ranked by panel of independent retired teachers and guidance counselors, based on grade point average, ACT/SAT score, athletic accomplishment, and personal essay.
Alexis Buschur and Brayden Mescher will each receive the Press Pros Sponsors’ Stan Wilker Memorial Scholarship in the amount of $3000 to help further their scholastic and athletic pursuits this fall. And it’s notable that 2026 marks $155,000 dollars in scholar-athlete awards through Press Pros since the program began in 2013 – the largest such endowment of any online media platform in Ohio.
Press Pros sponsors MAC scholar-athlete awards are made possible by the following area companies and contributing sponsors:
Moeller Trucking (Maria Stein), Minster Bank, Lefeld Welding Supply (Coldwater), Mercer In-Sight Family Eye Care, Keyhole Pizza (Newport), McSobers (Coldwater) Leugers Insurance (Maria Stein), Kremer Roofing (Versailles), The Mr. Shoppe (Coldwater), The Edge Sports Complex (Maria Stein), 49 Degrees (Coldwater), the St. Henry Bank, Carriage Werkes (St. Henry), Huffer Chiropractic (Osgood), Phelan Insurance (Versailles), VPP Industries (Versailles), Kaup Pharmacy (Fort Recovery and Versailles), H.A. Dorsten Construction (Minster), Westrich Furniture (Delphos), Minster Dental, Knapke Kitchens and Baths (Versailles), EB Real Estate (Greenville), Technical Roofing (St. Henry), Wilson Sports Medicine (Sidney), Logan Services (Vandalia), Pla-Mor Lanes (Coldwater), People’s Bank (Coldwater), presenting sponsor, Securcom.com (Minster), and the Bill and Dorothy Davis Foundation (Columbus).
SecurCom proudly sponsors MAC scholar-athletes on Press Pros Magazine.com.