ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – The College of Saint Benedict athletic department celebrated the accomplishments of the 2025-26 athletic year in May with its annual student-athlete celebration. Twelve Bennies were announced as finalists for the annual CSB Athlete of the Year award, presented to the top athlete of the season in each sport.

Sophomore wide receiver/safety Drew Buslee (Eagan, Minn.) was selected as CSB flag football's inaugural candidate for the honor. 

Buslee made an impact on both sides of the ball in CSB's championship season. She was awarded All-MWCFL conference honors after leading the team with 12 touchdown catches. She also collected five interceptions and returned three of them for defensive scores in eight games. 

It was Buslee who made history, hauling in a pass from first-year quarterback Peyton Boyd (Farmington, Minn.) on the first play from scrimmage in CSB's opening game against Gustavus. Two plays later, she recorded another milestone - catching a pass over the middle and making her way through traffic to the end zone for the first touchdown in program history. She led the team with five touchdowns in the opening three games of the CSB Jamboree. 

She scored four touchdowns and a pick-six in the next three Bennie games at the Northwestern-St. Paul Jamboree. 

Her most outstanding performance, though, came in the championship series at TCO Stadium. She helped the Bennies defeat Concordia in the title game with a last-second one-handed catch to cap a 20-point comeback. She got the Bennies on the board, 6-0, in the championship. She also hauled in the first score in the team's 13-12 semifinal win over St. Olaf. 

One of many dual-sport athletes on the Bennie flag football team, Buslee was also an All-MIAC guard for the basketball team. She led the team in scoring with 309 points (12.4 ppg), 56 assists and 72 steals. She played and started in all 25 contests, averaging 29.5 minutes per game. Buslee shot 30.3 percent from the field (86-for-284) and 27.3 percent from 3-point range (44-for-161). She recorded 18 games with double-digit points, three of which she eclipsed 20 or more points.

Saint Benedict dropped just one game in its inaugural season (7-1 overall), outscoring opponents 202-95. The Bennies won the MWCFL title with a dramatic 26-20 victory over Concordia. The Midwest Women's College Flag Football League enters its third season in 2026-27. The NCAA named it an "Emerging Sport for Women" across all three divisions in January of 2026 and is fast-tracking it toward full national championship status.