In recognition of his loyalty to Wheelock athletics and his family, the Algonquin Regional High graduate received the college’s Courage Award at its student-athlete recognition banquet.

His mother, Donna, died on March 15.

“It meant a lot to know that I had the athletic department and my teammates helping me get through the tough times I’ve faced this year,’’ said Campbell, a defender and goalkeeper on the college soccer team, and a captain-elect for next season. He had offered to play in the net for the school’s inaugural varsity lacrosse squad this spring.

“Since the day I made the decision to leave school, everyone at Wheelock has gone out of their way to do anything they could to help my family.’’

Wheelock lacrosse coach Dan Lee said he still considers Campbell to be one of the original members of his program.

“Dan volunteered to step in and give it a shot when no one else would, and that’s the type of selfless team player he is,’’ said Lee. “He is one of the most respected members of our team and that was evident when they decided to name one of our most successful offensive plays after him. We’ll be excited to see Dan back next spring, playing lacrosse at Wheelock.’’

Campbell, who started 16 games for the soccer team, registered 22 saves against Curry, tying for the third-highest single game total by a Division 3 goalie last fall.

“On and off the field,’’ said interim men’s soccer coach Stephanie Smyrl, “Dan emerged as a leader through his words and actions.’’

Freiman sizzles for Class A team Former Wellesley High standout Nate Freiman has been on a hot streak with the Lake Elsinore Storm, an advanced Class A affiliate of the San Diego Padres’ in the California League.

The 6-foot-7, 225-pound slugging first baseman, an eighth-round pick out of Duke in 2009, had 7 RBIs in three games last week and 15 RBIs over a 10-game span. He also had a pair of 5-RBI games this season.

Through 57 games, Freiman was batting .270 with 9 homers (including a grand slam), 14 doubles, and a triple, and had 51 RBIs to along with a .447 slugging percentage.

“Nate is figuring out how to use his big frame to his advantage,’’ said former Red Sox outfielder Phil Plantier, the Storm’s hitting coach and interim manager. “His RBI production has increased due to quality outs and increased contact rate to the middle of the field.’’

Last year in Fort Wayne, Ind., he hit .294 in 136 games with 14 homers, 43 doubles, and 84 RBIs, and was named to Midwest League’s midseason all-star team.

Bobby Butler aids in Calder Cup win Marlborough’s Bobby Butler capped a stellar season as a first-year pro in the Ottawa Senators’ organization, scoring the tying goal in the sixth and deciding game of the American Hockey League’s Calder Cup finals Tuesday night in Houston.

The 24-year-old right wing tied the game for Binghamton at 2 with a wrister early in the third period, before Ryan Keller netted the winner for the Senators six minutes later in their 3-2 victory over the Houston Aeros.

The 6-foot, 180-pound Butler, who collected 21 points (10 goals, 11 assists) in 36 games with the parent NHL club, scored 13 goals in the postseason for Binghamton, one shy of the AHL rookie record.

The squad dedicated the win to 62-year-old assistant coach Steve Stirling, a former Babson College and Providence College coach who underwent quadruple bypass surgery last Sunday.

Alyson Durben stars for Lesley Nashoba Regional grad Alyson Durben of Stow, a women’s soccer and softball captain at Lesley University, has been honored as the New England Collegiate Conference Female Student-Athlete of the Year.

“Alyson was a star on and off the field,’’ said Lesley’s director of athletics, Stan Viera. “She is a born leader and a perennial all-conference selection.’’

Durben, a soccer midfielder, set the program’s single-season (11) and career (25) assist records, and in 76 career games scored 19 goals and totaled 63 points. She also holds Lesley’s single-season softball records for extra base hits (30) and triples (8), and helped lead the Lynx to the NCAA Division 3 tournament as a freshman and a senior.

“She has taken advantage of every opportunity that has come her way as a student and an athlete,’’ added Lesley head softball coach Jen Benway, who noted Durben’s three-year role as cochair of the conference’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, and her participation in the NCAA Career in Sports Forum.

Durben will attend graduate school at Belmont University in Nashville with a focus on sports management.

Winning women on Brown crew The Brown University women’s crew won the NCAA Division 1 championship two weekends ago in Gold River, Calif., with the help of varsity-8 coxswain Ellie Smith, a senior from Brookline, and second varsity-8 rowers Laura McLellan, a junior from Watertown, and Anne Hooper, a senior from Dover.

“Ellie has been invaluable this year as our captain and coxswain. Her leadership and desire to win set the example for our rowers,’’ said Brown head coach John Murphy. “Laura proved to be one of our strongest rowers in the second varsity-8 boat, and Anne has improved every year and her presence in that boat was a stabilizing force.’’

Here and there Trinity College senior defenseman Teddy Bascom of Sudbury was named to the US Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Division 3 All-America third team, and head coach Michael Higgins, a Weston resident, was selected as the New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association and New England Small College Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. Trinity, 12-4, set a program single-season record for victories. . . Inductees to the Massachusetts State Soccer Coaches Association Hall of Fame included Bedford High’s Dave Wilson and Wellesley High’s Richard Bourgelas.

Marvin Pave can be reached at marvin.pave@rcn.com.