28 Huskers Claim Degrees

Lincoln - A total of 28 Husker student-athletes earned their first University of Nebraska-Lincoln degrees during the "Go Big Grad: Class of 2021 Graduation Celebrations" on Friday and Saturday at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Graduate Commencement began on Friday at 3 p.m. Husker volleyball All-American Kayla Caffey and football student-athlete Kyan Brumfield earned their first UNL degrees. Caffey, a middle blocker from Chicago, Illinois, who helped the Huskers advance to the NCAA Championship match on the court at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, earned her master's degree in Teaching Learning & Teacher Education. Brumfield, a defensive back from San Antonio, Texas, earned his master's degree in Applied Science.

Undergraduate Commencement exercises were held on Saturday at 9 a.m. at Pinnacle Bank Arena, with current Husker volleyball true junior Kenzie Knuckles earning her bachelor's degree as a marketing major in just three years after joining Nebraska as an early enrollee in January of 2019. Knuckles helped the Huskers to the NCAA Championship match on Saturday evening.

Saturday's graduation ceremony featured eight Nebraska football student-athletes led by Caleb Tannor, Damian Jackson, Brody Belt, Colton Feist, Eteva Mauga-Clements, Chris Walker and Tate Wildeman.

Nebraska women's basketball forward Bella Cravens earned her bachelor's degree as a communication studies major on Saturday, before helping the Huskers improve to 11-0 on the court against Drake Sunday. Cravens' family made their first visit to Lincoln from Hawaii to celebrate her graduation and watch her play for the first time at Pinnacle Bank Arena. 

Nebraska diving All-American Sara Troyer, who competed at USA Diving Winter Nationals on Thursday and Friday in Bloomington, Ind., was honored with her bachelor's degree from Nebraska on Saturday. She was joined by former swimming teammate Jessica Pentlarge in representing the Husker program.

The Nebraska soccer program featured a trio of graduates in Natalie Cooke, Kayla Mostowich and Theresa Pujado, while the Husker wrestling team was represented at graduation by 2019 NCAA All-American Isaiah White and current Husker Colton Wolfe.

Cody Mroczek and Grace Pagone represented the Husker track and field program, while baseball's Shay Schanaman, softball's Payton Huscroft and gymnasts Zach Peters and Torri Hutchinson rounded out Nebraska's December graduates.

The December graduates came from near and far to call Nebraska home during their careers. The group came to Lincoln from 12 states, including California, Texas, Georgia, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Nevada, South Dakota, Maine, Hawaii and Nebraska (9). The Husker graduating class also included a pair of Canadians.

Nebraska continues to feature one of the highest graduation rates in the country, while leading the nation in the number of CoSIDA Academic All-Americans (347) and NCAA Top 10 Award winners (18) across all sports.

December 2021 Nebraska Student-Athlete Graduates (28)
Brody Belt - Football - Omaha, Nebraska (Criminology & Criminal Justice)
Kyan Brumfield - Football - San Antonio, Texas (Applied Science - Master's)
Kayla Caffey - Volleyball - Chicago, Illinois - (Teaching Learning & Teacher Education - Master's)
Natalie Cooke - Soccer - Richmond, British Columbia, Canada (Nutrition & Health Sciences)
Bella Cravens - Women's Basketball - Laie, Hawaii (Communication Studies)
Elizabeth Ewert - Rifle - Burnsville, Minnesota (Mechanical Engineering)
Colton Feist - Football - Yutan, Nebraska (Management)
Aimee Fischer - Swimming & Diving - Lincoln, Nebraska 
Elena Flake - Rifle - Brunswick, Maine (Criminology & Criminal Justice)
Payton Huscroft - Softball - Omaha, Nebraska (Advertising & Public Relations)
Torri Hutchinson - Women's Gymnastics - Pearland, Texas (Biological Sciences)
Damian Jackson - Football - Las Vegas, Nevada (Child, Youth & Family Studies)
Kenzie Knuckles - Volleyball - Yorktown, Indiana (Marketing)
Wyatt Liewer - Football - O'Neill, Nebraska (Agricultural Economics)
Eteva Mauga-Clements - Football - Pleasant Hill, California (Criminology & Criminal Justice)
Kayla Mostowich - Soccer - Edmonton, Alberta, Canada (Management/Marketing)
Cody Mroczek - Track & Field - Columbus, Nebraska (Business, Marketing & IT Education)
Grace Pagone - Track & Field/Cross Country - Oswego, Illinois (Journalism)
Jessica Pentlarge - Swimming & Diving - San Diego, California (Nutrition & Health Sciences)
Zach Peters - Men's Gymnastics - Greenwood, Indiana (Psychology)
Theresa Pujado - Soccer - Harrisburg, South Dakota (Psychology)
Shay Schanaman - Baseball - Grand Island, Nebraska (Economics)
Caleb Tannor - Football - Stone Mountain, Georgia (Child, Youth & Family Studies)
Sara Troyer - Swimming & Diving - Goshen, Indiana (Child, Youth & Family Studies)
Chris Walker - Football - Lincoln, Nebraska (Criminology & Criminal Justice)
Isaiah White - Wrestling - Chicago, Illinois (Child, Youth & Family Studies)
Tate Wildeman - Football - Parker, Colorado (Sports Media & Communication)
Colton Wolfe - Wrestling - Columbus, Nebraska (Social Science Education)