It was a historic year in the classroom for the Purple Fridays family. All 17 players on the 2025-26 varsity basketball team made the honor roll, with a staggering 13 players earning First Honors. Balancing a grueling varsity athletic schedule with elite academic performance requires dedication and exceptional time management, but this squad rose to the challenge, defining what it truly means to be a student-athlete at Elder.

The team’s academic dominance was fully on display at the annual Academic Awards Ceremony, where Elder High School recognizes the top two students in each grade. In an incredible sweep for the basketball program, both the top student in the junior class, Josh Busam, and the top student in the sophomore class, Mikey Cluxton, were members of the varsity team.

The accolades didn't stop there. Several other varsity basketball players took home prestigious departmental awards for excellence in specific disciplines:

• Connor Moore – Art Department Award
• Chase Walpole – Social Studies Department Award

Junior forward Josh Busam had an especially historic afternoon, taking home the top student awards in English, Science, Math, and Social Studies. 

Congratulations to the entire varsity basketball team, their families, and their teachers for setting a gold standard of academic excellence this year. Altiora!