Derkowski, Wolf Named 2025 Ernest T. Sigler Award Winners
9/18/2025 1:10:00 PM | General, Men's Basketball, Softball
CHICAGO, Ill. -- University of Michigan softball pitcher Lauren Derkowski and men's basketball forward Danny Wolf were named as the 2025 Ernest T. Sigler Award recipients by the University of Michigan Club of Greater Chicago.
The Sigler Award, established in 1977, is presented annually to U-M's top male and female student-athletes from the Chicago area who demonstrate exceptional leadership and athletic performance. It is named in honor of Ernest T. Sigler, who served as the club's executive director for 35 years.
Derkowski is the fourth softball player to receive the Sigler Award, following Samantha Findlay (2005), Angela Findlay (2010) and Lyndsay Doyle (2014). She led the Wolverines with a 17-13 record in 2025 with a 2.75 earned-run average, 165 strikeouts and six complete-game shutouts with six more combined shutouts. She was selected to the NFCA All-Great Lakes Region first team and named the Big Ten Tournament's Most Outstanding Player for the second straight season after going 3-0 with a 1.11 ERA and 12 strikeouts over the Wolverines' tournament championship run.
In her four seasons at Michigan, Derkowski was a two-time All-Big Ten honoree, earning first-team honors in 2024, and three-time NFCA All-Region selection. She posted a 57-40 career record with a 2.35 ERA, 14 shutouts, 653 strikeouts and a .218 average against. Her strikeout total places her ninth among Michigan's all-time program leaders.
Derkowski competed in the inaugural season of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) last summer as a reserve player with the Talons club, which went on to capture the league's first championship.
Wolf is the fifth men's basketball player to earn the accolade, joining Dan Pelekoudas (1983), Rob Pelinka (1993), Charles Matthews (2019) and Mike Smith (2021). After transferring from Yale ahead of the 2024-25 season, Wolf nearly averaged a double-double with 13.2 points and a Big Ten-best 9.7 rebounds per game. He was instrumental in helping Michigan capture its fourth Big Ten Tournament title and advance to the NCAA Sweet 16 for the sixth time since 2014.
A Karl Malone Award finalist, Wolf earned All-Big Ten first-team honors from The Associated Press, second-team honors from the league coaches and media, and was recognized on the NABC Great Lakes District first team. He also collected All-Big Ten Tournament and NCAA South Regional honors.
One of four Wolverines to start all 37 games, Wolf delivered 26 double-figure scoring efforts, including eight 20-point games and a season-high 23 points at Minnesota (OT; Jan. 16). He finished with 360 rebounds (sixth most in a single season at U-M), 19 double-digit rebounding games, and 15 double-doubles.
Wolf entered the 2025 NBA Draft and was selected 27th overall in the first round by the Brooklyn Nets, becoming Michigan's 17th NBA Draft pick since 2011 (11 first-round, six second-round).
Ernest T. Sigler Award Winners
1977: Dominic Tedesco (Football)
1978: Robert J. Creek (Gymnastics)
1979: Matt Horwich (Tennis)
1980: George Lilja (Football)
1981: Kurt Becker (Football)
1982: Robert Thompson (Football)
1983: Art Balourdos (Football) & Dan Pelekoudas (Basketball)
1984: Mike Mallory (Football)
1985: Doug Mallory (Football)
1986: Andre McIntyre (Football)
1987: Mike Husar (Football)
1988: Derick Walker (Football)
1989: Chris Calloway (Football)
1990: Erick Anderson (Football)
1991: Dave Ritter (Football)
1992: Corwin Brown (Football)
1993: Robert Pelinka (Basketball)
1994: Trezelle Jenkins (Football)
1995: Thomas Guynes (Football)
1996: Blake Sloan (Hockey)
1997: Tai Streets (Football)
1998: Bubba Berenzweig (Hockey) & Aaron Shea (Football)
1999: Elizabeth Kampfe (Track & Field/Cross Country) & Tim Dehr (Gymnastics)
2000: Jeanne Shin (Field Hockey) & Robert Fraumann (Football)
2001: Shannon Melka (Volleyball) & Kurt Anderson (Football)
2002: Molly Powers (Field Hockey) & Dan Rumishek (Football)
2003: Chantel Reedus (Volleyball) & Tony Pape (Football)
2004: Therese Heaton (Soccer), Jason Avant (Football) & Al Montoya (Hockey)
2005: Samantha Findlay (Softball) & Jason Avant (Football)
2006: Katie Lieberman (Gymnastics) & Eric Tannenbaum (Wrestling)
2007: Katie Bruzdzinski (Volleyball) & Tim Jamison (Football)
2008: Katie Bruzdzinski (Volleyball) & Tim Jamison (Football)
2009: Casey Taylor (Track & Field) & Adam Harris (Track & Field)
2010: Angela Findlay (Softball) &Â David Moosman (Football)
2011: Lexi Zimmerman (Volleyball) & Thomas Kelley (Gymnastics)
2012: Caitlin Dauw (Swimming) & David Molk (Football)
2013: Katie Zurales (Gymnastics) & Evan King (Tennis)
2014: Lyndsay Doyle (Softball) & JT Compher (Hockey)
2015: Kristen Dodge (Tennis) & Eric Jacobson (Baseball)
2016: Kelly Christner (Softball) & Graham Glasgow (Football)
2017: Brienne Minor (Tennis) & Ty Isaac (Football)
2018: Olivia Karas (Gymnastics) & Micah Beller (Track & Field/Cross Country)
2019: Emily Krebs (Rowing) & Charles Matthews (Basketball)
2020: Lexi Funk (Gymnastics) & Jordan Glasgow (Football)
2021: Nicki Hernandez (Soccer) & Mike Smith (Basketball)
2022: Sierra Brooks (Gymnastics) & Paul Juda (Gymnastics)
2023: Sierra Brooks (Gymnastics) & Paul Juda (Gymnastics)
2024: Sierra Brooks (Gymnastics) & JJ McCarthy (Football)
2025: Lauren Derkowski (Softball) & Danny Wolf (Basketball)
