The Big Ten Conference announced Tuesday afternoon that 115 University of Nebraska student-athletes earned the Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award. The honor highlights student-athletes who recorded a minimum grade-point average (GPA) of 3.7 or higher for the previous academic year.
The honorees came from all of Nebraska's 24 athletic programs, including double-figure totals in women's track and field (23), men's track and field (16), soccer (10) and softball (11). Special recognition goes to the 25 student-athletes who posted perfect 4.0 GPAs during the 2023-24 season. That group is listed at the bottom of the release.
Big Ten Faculty Representatives established the Distinguished Scholar Award in 2008 to supplement the Academic All-Big Ten program. Distinguished Scholar Award recipients must have earned Academic All-Big Ten recognition in the previous academic year, must have been enrolled full time at the institution for the entire previous academic year (two semesters or three quarters) and earned a minimum GPA of 3.70 or better during the previous academic year, excluding any summer grades. The Academic All-Big Ten threshold is a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher for a student's academic career.
Husker Student-Athletes with 4.0 GPAs in 2023-24
- Ethan Piper (Football)
- Matthias Algarin (Men's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Lorenzo Paissan (Men's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Seth Schnakenberg (Men's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Grant Wasserman (Men's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Tyus Wilson (Men's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Alea Hardie (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- McKenna Lovehaug (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Hillevi Carlsson (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Lishanna Ilves (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Darby Thomas (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field)
- Lindsey Thiele (Women's Golf)
- Asher Cohen (Men's Gymnastics)
- Emma Spence (Women's Gymnastics)
- Marissa Popoola (Soccer)
- Abby Vacek (Soccer)
- Brooke Andrews (Softball)
- Sydney Gray (Softball)
- Caitlynn Neal (Softball)
- Abbie Squier (Softball)
- Emily Haimes (Swimming & Diving)
- JoJo Randby (Swimming & Diving)
- Roni Hietaranta (Men's Tennis)
- Jillian Roa (Women's Tennis)
- Alexis Buchert (Bowling)