Charleston Catholic's Zaden Ranson Wins Hardman Award
By Connect-Bridgeport Staff on April 15, 2026
The list of previous Hardman Award winners are a "who's who" of West Virginia athletes.
Legends like Jerry West, Randy Moss and Pat White have taken home the state's top amateur athlete award, bestowed by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association.
Charleston Catholic's Zaden Ranson is the latest to cement his name in such a distinguished class as this year's Hardman Award recipient.
Former University of Charleston running back Chavon Wright took home the award last year.
The Hardman Award is named after A.L. "Shorty" Hardman, who was the executive sports editor of the Charleston Gazette.
Ranson spent his four years competing with the Irish on the soccer field, basketball hardwood and baseball diamond.
He's been part of state-title teams in each of those sports at Charleston Catholic.
But when asked about earning such a prestigious honor, he, arguably for the first time in his life, was speechless.
"When you look at those names, they're all legendary. It honestly hasn't really hit me," Ranson said. "I'm really just trying to live in the moment and trying to process this. But it means so much to my family and me. They've helped me so much throughout the years, along with my coaches and teammates. None of this would've happened without them. To be able to represent Charleston Catholic High School by winning this award, it means the world to me."
Ranson becomes the first Charleston Catholic athlete to receive this honor.
The Irish tri-sport athlete joins Morgantown's Irene Riggs as the only two high schoolers to win the award since 2000.
Ranson is a three-time Class AA first-team all-state selection in basketball and is looking to become a three-time Class AA all-state selection in baseball.
However, it's not just what he does on the courts and fields that has stood out.
Ranson has accumulated a 4.42 GPA during his four years of high school, including a 4.46 GPA in his senior year.
The Irish athlete was also recently recognized as the West Virginia Athletic Directors Association's Male Scholar Athlete of the Year.
"I'm never going take any of these [awards and honors] for granted, that's for sure," Ranson said. "All the hard work I've put in, for it to show is a pretty satisfying feeling. I do have to remain humble, too. I know anything can happen at any time. For me, it's just keeping my head down and taking that next step. My athletic career has continued to motivate me to remain humble and keep my head down."
Irish boys basketball coach Hunter Moles saw the capabilities Ranson possessed at a young age.
Moles and the Irish appeared in the 2023 Class AA title game, which was Catholic's first trip to the final since 2014. Ranson was the lone freshman for Catholic to start in that game.
As the saying goes, the rest is history. Ranson again started in the 2024 Class AA title game against Bluefield, in which the Irish captured their first state title since 2012.
"Probably the stuff that people don't see is what he does behind closed doors," Moles said. "It's his mentality and how he handles adversity. It's kind of hard for me to even explain it. He's just an elite human. He's a natural-born leader. He does all the little things, and he just buys into the team. That's what makes him even more special, it's just, he's so [much about] winning and being a part of something bigger than himself."
Irish baseball coach Will Bobinger has seen the same thing.
Ranson was a part of Catholic's 2024 Class A baseball championship team, which beat Williamstown in the final, 6-3.
"He's got a lot of things going for him," Bobinger said. "He's extremely intelligent, first off. He grasps situations. He's very logical in the way his approach to any kind of problem there is. It's not just his pure instinct. He can really [reason through] things. But he's just a fantastic and talented athlete, as you can see from his basketball, soccer and baseball careers."
Moles, who just finished his seventh season leading the basketball Irish, feels that Ranson's career is up there with some of the top names in Charleston Catholic sports history.
"When you talk about Charleston Catholic athletics, his name's going to get brought up," Moles said. "That's huge coming from a historic program in Charleston Catholic athletics. We have a lot of those, and he is the newest and freshest right now. His name will be brought up in those conversations. He's just done a lot of great things. It's the people that he's been around that will support him and help spread that word.
"You don't hear very many people talk badly or say they haven't had a good interaction with Zaden Ranson. He's elite and one of one."
Ranson's academic and athletic career will continue next at Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts, a selective prep school with fewer than 700 students.
"To be able to say that I'm going to Deerfield next year is really amazing," Ranson said. "I've wanted to go there ever since the opportunity was given to me. It's a very competitive school both athletically and academically. My main goal is to be myself up there. I'm not going to change anything about me. I'm gonna go up there and compete because that's a big part of me."
Ranson will have the opportunity to play both basketball and baseball at Deerfield.
"I'm pumped," Ranson said. "The fact that I even get to play basketball for another year is awesome because I thought I was just gonna go to a four-year college and play baseball. The fact that I get to compete in two sports is exciting. I cannot wait to get up to campus."
A certain drive to Ranson led to his successful four years at Charleston Catholic.
It's not something that he adopted overnight. Ranson remained humble when asked from where this "drive" originates.
"I look at it like it's more about the name in front of my chest that I'm playing for," Ranson said. "I'm also playing for the man above in God. Without Him, I wouldn't be where I am today. My family has also been a huge piece for me. I'm a representative of my parents of how much they've sacrificed and all the hard work that they do for me. For me to reciprocate that on the playing field really drives me and gives me more hunger to be better.
"I also credit my coaches and teammates, too. They push me and keep me on my toes. I have such a strong support system. My support system is just such a blessing, because everyone is trying to lift me."
Ranson's time at Charleston Catholic is almost over.
He's aware of that, but it's allowed him to reflect more on his time with the Irish.
But it's not the championship game victories or the accolades he garnered during his time at Charleston Catholic.
It's more about those around him and the relationships created that he mentioned will last a lifetime.
"Whenever someone asks me about what I'll remember about Charleston Catholic, it's the process of trying to get to where we all wanted to be," Ranson said. "We all wanted to win a state championship in the process of being there. It's the grind and journey of it all. That's what meant the most to me. We worked our butts off. We used 110 percent effort during practices and games. We've had a lot of tough losses in sports, but we always got back up. We all tried our best.
"To think that my teammates, coaches and I all gave our best effort is something I can live with. That's what satisfies me. I have no regrets about what was accomplished or not during my time at Charleston Catholic."
The Hardman Award will be presented by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association at the 79th Annual Victory Awards, Sunday May 3 at Charleston Town Center.
