2023-24 Meg Votta Memorial Scholarship Recipient: Barton "Harold" Hacker
Barton “Harold” Hacker began his rugby career in the fifth grade with the Dublin Rugby Club in Dublin, Ohio. At first, he did not enjoy the flag, non-contact form of the game, but once full contact began, he fell in love with the sport. As his career progressed, so did his exposure to the game playing both 7s and 15s. As he entered high school, he moved to flanker and was picked to his conference’s select team on numerous occasions.
“As a Coach you have many kids that come into your team who grow under your teachings and become better men, athletes, scholars, and members of society. However, Harold is cut from different material as he would have grown, and was driven to be better, with no help from me. I am truly astounded every day I see this young man grow. His curiosity, strength, leadership and drive to be better and make everyone around him better is why he has succeeded on my rugby team and why he will succeed at the University of Tennessee, and in the rest of his life,” said Dylan Murphy, Dublin Rugby Club Head Coach.
Harold graduated from The Columbus Academy in Gahanna, Ohio with a 3.76 GPA. He was a dual sport athlete, earning numerous honors on the gridiron, including: 2022 Academic All-State Player honors, a 2022 Division V Region First-Team Selection, a 2022 Mid-State League First-Team Selection, and a 2022 Mid-State League Ohio Conference Lineman of the Year. Despite receiving offers to play Division II football, he has elected to further his rugby career at the collegiate level.
Hacker will attend the University of Tennessee and pursue a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology with a focus in pre-med while playing for the Volunteers. It is Harold’s intent to become an orthopedic physician to help athletes through their recovery from sports-related injuries. He is eager to compete at the collegiate level and would like to earn a spot on the A-side in his freshman campaign. In the future, he dreams of hearing his name called during the Major League Rugby draft.
