Huskers Named All-America Scholars

Five Huskers captured All-America Scholar awards when the Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) announced its annual academic honors on Tuesday.

WGCA All-American Kate Smith highlighted Nebraska's list of All-America Scholars. The fifth-year senior from Detroit Lakes, Minn., captured the 2021 Big Ten Conference individual championship before earning her degree as a graphic design major in May. Smith claimed her second consecutive WGCA All-America Scholar award.

Senior Kirsten Baete (Beatrice, Neb.) added the third WGCA All-America Scholar award of her career. Baete also came on strong late in the season on the course for the Big Red, tying for 16th individually at the Big Ten Championship to help Nebraska to a tie for second in the final team standings.

Junior Megan Whittaker (Elkhorn, Neb.) joined Baete in capturing her third consecutive WGCA All-America Scholar certificate. Whittaker also played a key role in Nebraska's success at the Big Ten Championship, tying for 18th individually with a career-best three-round total of 219.

Graduate transfer Alice Duan (Reno, Nev.) claimed a WGCA All-America Scholar honor of her own after an outstanding season for the Huskers. Duan tied for 11th with an even-par 216, including a second-round 68 (-4) to fuel Nebraska's run to its best conference team finish since 1984. Duan earned spots on the Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll in both semesters of 2020-21 while pursuing additional certification in business analytics.

Freshman Lindsey Thiele (Wahoo, Neb.) rounded out Nebraska's collection of WGCA All-America Scholars in 2021. A regular contributor in Nebraska's lineup, Lindsey is the third member of the Thiele family to earn WGCA All-America Scholar honors as a Husker, joining her older sisters Haley (2016, 2018, 2019, 2020) and Hannah (2018).

Nebraska was one of only five Big Ten Conference teams to produce as many as five 2021 WGCA All-America Scholars, joining Illinois, Michigan State, Minnesota and Rutgers. The Huskers were also one of 26 Division I teams to qualify for NCAA Regional play and produce five or more WGCA All-America Scholars. 

Since 1989, 38 Husker golfers have combined for 87 WGCA All-America Scholar awards. In order to earn mention as an All-America Scholar, golfers must produce a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 3.50.