BERKELEY - Cal women's soccer standouts Emi Lawson and Kathleen Messinger were recognized among the best and the brightest of Cal's student-athletes Monday at the annual Cal Student-Athlete Academic Honors Luncheon at Haas Pavilion.
Messinger was awarded both the Golden Bear Award for highest grade point average among her squad, as well as the Oscar Geballe scholarship. The award recognizes Geballe's devotion to Cal and his strong belief in the value of combining scholarship and intercollegiate athletic competition.
Lawson received a $3,000 stipend toward post-graduate work as part of the Pac-12 Postgraduate Scholarship.
Full recap from the Bear Blog below:
A host of awards and postgraduate scholarships were handed down as Cal's athletic department paid tribute to a variety of student-athletes demonstrating a diverse set of achievements.
Cal's women's golf team did a back-and-forth to the podium after receiving the Big C Most Improved Team GPA Award and the Golden Bear Team Award for the highest cumulative team GPA on campus. It marked the second year in a row the women's golf team won the Golden Bear Team Award. The winning cumulative GPA of 3.54 set a new Cal record, breaking the women's golf team's own mark that was set last year at 3.46.
Swimmer Catherine Breed took the Walter A. Haas Jr. Community Service Award, given annually to a student-athlete for his or her outstanding contribution to community service. Hammed Suleman of the men's track team captured the Joseph M. Kavanagh Award as the most academically-improved student-athlete. Suleman also was the student speaker for the luncheon.
The following is a list of award-winners:
Golden Bear Team Award
The Golden Bear Team Award is given to the varsity team with the highest cumulative grade-point average. This year's award, for the second consecutive year, goes to the women's golf team with a team GPA of 3.54.
Big C Most Improved Team Award
This award, which goes to the team that has made the greatest improvement in the last year relative to its historical grade-point average, also goes to women's golf.
Tom Hansen Conference Medal
The Tom Hansen Pac-12 Conference Medal is awarded annually at each member institution to that university's outstanding senior male and female student-athletes. The determination is based on the exhibition of the greatest combination of performance and achievement in scholarship, athletics and leadership.
Male - Brandon Hagy (men's golf)
Female - Alicia Asturias (women's gymnastics)
Neufeld Scholar-Athlete Awards
The Neufeld Scholar-Athlete Awards are given to the graduating male and female student-athletes with the highest cumulative grade-point averages. The award was established by Cal Hall of Famer William Neufeld Sr. in honor and memory of his son, William Jr., who ran track at Cal before his untimely death in a boating accident.
Male - Scott Farley (men's swimming) Female - Nicole Larson (women's track & field)
Pac-12 Postgraduate Scholarships
Created to honor outstanding scholar-athletes intending to pursue graduate studies and awarded by each Pac-12 institution, they include a $3,000 stipend for graduate work.
Emi Lawson - women's soccer
Ben Hinshaw - men's swimming
Allie Swartz - field hockey
Mark Brazinski - football
Oscar Geballe Postgraduate Scholarships
This award was created through the generosity of Dr. Theodore Geballe to honor his father, Oscar Geballe. It recognizes Oscar Geballe's devotion to Cal and his strong belief in the value of combining scholarship and intercollegiate athletic competition. Since 1981, the Geballe award has helped more than 75 Golden Bears continue their education at the postgraduate level with a $5,000 stipend going to each winner.
Mitchel Bartolo - football
Kathleen Messinger - women's soccer
Maggie Simpson - women's track & field
Jake Gimbel Prize and Anna Espenschade Award
The Jake Gimbel Prize and Anna Espenschade Award were established in the 1930s and 1987, respectively, to recognize a graduating male and female student-athlete for successful integration of academic and athletic pursuits. The winners of these awards exemplify the true "Golden Bear" spirit.
Male - Carter Crowe (men's crew)
Female - Cindy Tran (women's swimming), Jordan O'Reilly (field hockey)
Joseph McDonnell Kavanagh Award
This award, in its sixth year, recognizes the student-athlete who has made exceptional improvement in his or her academic and intellectual pursuits at Cal. The University's motto - Fiat Lux, "Let there be light" - is appropriate for this most academically inspirational athlete award.
Hammed Suleman - men's track & field
Walter A. Haas Jr. Community Service Award
The Walter A. Haas Jr. Community Service Award was created to honor Walter A. Haas Jr. for his commitment and service to the University and larger community. This award is given annually to a student-athlete for his or her outstanding contribution to community service.
Catherine Breed - women's swimming
Jonathan and Judy Hoff Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year
In its inaugural year, the Jonathan and Judy Hoff Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year award recognizes a football student-athlete who has dedicated himself to a holistic approach toward academic, athletic and persona development by demonstrating consistent daily routienes, persistent community outreach and collaborative leadership ability.
James Grisom
Golden Bear Achievement Awards
The Golden Bear Achievement Awards are presented to the student-athlete with the highest GPA on his or her respective team.
SPORT NAME MAJOR
Baseball Jesse Kay Intended Bus. Aministration
Men’s Basketball Garrett Galvin Intended Georgraphy
Men’s Crew Jack Kornfeld Molecular & Cell Biology
Football Matt Anderson Intended Business
Men’s Golf Brandon Hagy Business Administration
Men’s Gymnastics Kevin Tran Business Administration
Rugby Spencer Morris Business Administration
Men’s Soccer Omid Jalali Bus. Administration/Int. Biology
Men’s Swim/Dive Scott Farley Geography
Men’s Tennis Jack Sanford Business Administration
Men’s Cross Country Thomas Joyce Intended Economics
Men’s Track Kyle Ezold Intended Bus. Administration
Men’s Water Polo Thomas Agramonte American Studies
Women’s Basketball Mikayla Lyles Interdisciplinary Studies
Women’s Crew Cara Bohmann German
Field Hockey Kristen Lee Intended Psychology
Women’s Golf Jo Ee Kok Business Administration
Women’s Gymnastics Alicia Asturias Psychology
Lacrosse Michele DeVincent Media Studies
Women’s Soccer Kathleen Messinger Political Science
Softball Mary Lee Mechanical Engineering
Women’s Swim/Dive Rachael Acker French/Int. Biology
Women’s Tennis Lynn Chi Intended Int. Biology
Women’s Cross Country Ashlyn Dadkhah Cognitive Science
Women’s Track & Field Nicole Larson Economics
Volleyball Alyssa Jensen Intended Media Studies
Women’s Water Polo Molly Quinn Intended Anthropology
