123 student-athletes honored at Hanzad Academic Awards Ceremony
San Jose State University honored 123 student-athletes in 16 categories for academic excellence at the 16th Annual Arm and Pat Hanzad Academic Awards Ceremony Thursday afternoon at the Student Union Ballroom.
| Gymnastics posted the best team GPA for the 2002-03 academic year. |
Junior quarterback Scott Rislov from Pierre, S.D., earned the top individual honor after recording a 4.0 cumulative grade point average in his first academic year at San Jose State. Rislov was named to the school’s President’s List and was also honored as the top male student-athlete for the 2002-03 academic year. He is also a member of the Western Athletic Conference All-Academic team.
Senior midfielder Mariko Yoshihara from San Jose, Calif., and member of the women’s soccer team, earned top honors for all women student-athletes with the highest grade point average for the 2002-03 academic year. Yoshihara was also a Western Athletic Conference All-Academic honoree, an SJSU All-Academic team member, named to the schools Dean’s List and an Arthur Ashe, Jr., Award winner.
For the second consecutive year, the women’s gymnastics team earned the school’s top team award, posting the highest grade point average for both the fall and spring semesters.
This year’s ceremony also included three new categories of awards: the Arm & Pat Hanzad Most Improved Award, the Order of Sparta Academic Excellence Award and the SJSU All-Academic team.
The first Arm & Pat Hanzad Most Improved Award went to senior lineman Joe Hayes from Vallejo, Calif. Hayes was the most improved scholar-athlete from his freshman to his senior year.
The Order of Sparta Academic Excellence Award was presented to four student-athletes who earned a 3.0 or higher GPA for seven consecutive semesters. The awards were presented to senior Cynthia Harrah (women’s soccer) of Fresno, Calif., senior Christina Huffman (women’s cross country) of San Jose, Calif., Stephanie Pascucci (volleyball) of Cerritos, Calif., and Yoshihara.
The SJSU All-Academic team consists of student-athletes who have the highest cumulative GPA and have earned at least 60 units at San Jose State on each of the 16 athletic teams. The team is listed below.
SJSU All Academic Team
Name, Year, Sport
Michael Dorsa, Sr., Baseball
Tuati Wooden, Sr., Football
Scott Sonnenberg, Sr., Men's Basketball
Issac Weitraub, Jr., Men's Golf
Nicole Deacon, Jr., Women's Golf
Teoma Taylor, Jr., Women's Basketball
Coral Silverstone, Sr., Tennis
Rebecca Ronzio, So., Gymnastics
Tracy Harkins, So., Swimming
Laura Scott, So., Water Polo
Tara Hall, Sr., Softball
Ashleigh Nebeker, So., W Cross Country
Matt Heard, Sr., M Cross Country
Brooke Herald, So., Volleyball
Tony Chang, So., Men's Soccer
Mariko Yoshihara, Sr., Women's Soccer