May 13, 1998
BERKELEY, Calif.--Football player Brandon Whiting and soccer/water polo player Karen Cook were named the University of California's winners of the Pacific-10 Conference Medal at the annual Student-Athlete Honors Lunch held today on campus. All told, 103 Golden Bear athletes were recognized for posting a GPA of 3.5 and above, and the University also honored 14 of its 26 intercollegiate athletic teams for carrying a team GPA of 3.0 and above.
The Pac-10 Conference Medal is awarded annually at each Pac-10 institution to the outstanding senior male and female student-athlete, determined by performance and achievement in scholarship, athletics and leadership.
Whiting, a four-year starter on the defensive line for the Golden Bears, earned second team All-Pac-10 honors as a junior and senior, and honorable mention as a freshman. He wrapped up his stellar career with 24.5 sacks, which ranks as the third-best total in school history, and ranks sixth all-time with 35 tackles for loss. A two-time team captain, Whiting earned team awards as a senior for Most Valuable Defensive Lineman and the Joe Roth Award for courage, attitude, and sportsmanship. He is a three-time Pac-10 Conference All-Academic team member, carrying a 3.24 GPA in Developmental Studies at Cal and was a fourth round draft pick by the Philadelphia Eagles this spring.
Cook has been a star on two of Cal's teams as the school record-holding goalie on the soccer team and as a driver on the nationally ranked water polo team. Cook was a team captain in both sports, thus making her the first dual-sport captain in Cal history. In soccer, Cook established school records for career (22) and season (11) shutouts, and led the Bears to a ninth-place NCAA finish in 1993. Cook earned Pac-10 All-Academic first team honors as a senior and second team honors as both a junior and sophomore. In water polo, Cook earned third team All-America honors as a sophomore and junior, and helped the Bears to three consecutive second place finishes at the National Collegiate Water Polo Championships. Cook is graduating in May with a degree in Conservation Resource Studies (3.39 GPA) and is interested in a career as an environmental educator.
Tennis player Kian Raiszadeh earned the Jake Gimbel Prize and swimmer Katy Reding received the Anna Espenschade Award, awards that recognize the graduating male and female student-athlete for excellence in attitude in athletic endeavor. The prizes were established to encourage students to maintain an attitude of "proper and just relation of athletics to scholastic activity and attainment".
Raiszadeh is a two-time team captain of Cal's 13th-ranked tennis team and a four-year letterwinner. A tough competitor known for his work ethic, he has done volunteer work tutoring disadvantaged youth for Arthur Ashe's tennis foundation. He is a pre-med student majoring in integrative biology major.
Reding is the captain of Cal's women's swimming team which finished eighth at the 1998 NCAA Championships. A three-time Pac-10 All-Academic Team member, she was selected by her teammates as the Golden Bear Award Winner, recognizing her outstanding character and leadership. At Cal, Steding's extracurricular activities have included being a tutor and mentor at King Junior High School and vice president of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She is a mass communications major.
The Walter A. Haas Jr. Award for Community Service was given to football defensive back John Rice. A sociology major, Rice has been involved in serving the community virtually since the day he stepped on campus. He has been a student advisor for the financial aid office, a Resident Advisor and Program Assistant in the dorms, and a summer camp youth instructor. The last two years, Rice has been the Community Services Coordinator for Stiles Hall and was named a member of the Accord for Youth AmeriCorps National Service Program. Rice has also been recognized for his service contributions in receiving honors such as the Student Life Achievement Award, the Everett Merriman Award, and the UC Berkeley Human Corps Outstanding Community Service Award. He will continue his education in the doctoral program of the School of Education at Cal.
Gymnastics team captain Josh Landau and volleyball player Brooke Weaver were the recipients of the Neufeld Scholar Athlete Award, given to the graduating student-athlete with the highest cumulative gpa. Landau, a member of Cal's two-time NCAA Championship team, carries a 3.839 gpa in human biodynamics and will attend medical school at the University of North Carolina next fall. Weaver has posted an impressive 3.57 gpa in integrative biology as a four-year letterwinner with the Golden Bear volleyball team, and is a three-time Pac-10 All-Academic team honoree.
The Oscar Geballe Postgraduate Scholarships are awarded annually to assist student-athletes in continuing their education at the postgraduate level. This year's honorees are football offensive lineman Yauger Williams, water polo player Jen Chan and men's gymnast Josh Landau.
The Beta Theta Pi Award is a scholarship that covers the cost of tuition and fees for an outstanding female student-athlete, and this year's winner is gymnastics team captain, Angela Mapa.
The Bogie Bogart Bear Bucks scholarship is given to student-athletes in pre-law, pre-med, science or engineering majors, and this year's winners are football player Marcus Oliver and softball player Maiko Bristow.
The women's cross country team earned the honor for highest team grade point average (3.31) for the second consecutive year. In addition, 13 other Golden Bear squads posted team gpa's above 3.0: women's tennis, men's cross country, women's swimming & diving, women's crew, men's tennis, women's volleyball, women's golf, women's gymnastics, men's swimming and diving, women's basketball, women's water polo, men's gymnastics and men's soccer.
The Golden Bear Award is given to the student-athlete on each of Cal's 26 intercollegiate teams with the highest cumulative gpa in at least two semesters at Cal, and meeting a minimum 3.2 gpa. The men's honorees include: John Stephens (basketball), Michael Wood (crew), Chris Maier (cross country and track & field), Yauger Williams (football), Josh Landau (gymnastics), Justin Braiker (rugby), Derek Jostad (soccer), and Jeffrey Green (water polo). The women's honorees are: Paige Bowie (basketball and softball), Corinna Bosworth (crew), Kirsten Jensen (cross country and track & field), Elke Popp (field hockey), Eden Anderson (golf), Elizabeth Berlin (gymnastics), Sarah Conner (soccer), Ellie Overton (swimming), Francesca La'O (tennis), Sara Waltman (volleyball), and Beth Rasala (water polo).
