Four Cardinals Earn ACC Postgraduate Scholarship Awards

GREENSBORO, N.C.- Four University of Louisville student-athletes: Alli Bitting (field hockey), Michaela Dukes (rowing) and Gabriela Leon (track and field) were among 54 recipients of the 2022 Weaver-James-Corrigan-Swofford Postgraduate Scholarship Award while Kianna Smith (women's basketball) was named an honorary recipient as announced by the Atlantic Coast Conference today.

This year's list includes three student-athletes who will also receive the Thacker Award and nine student-athletes who plan to pursue professional careers in their chosen sports and were named honorary recipients.

"Congratulations to this year's incredible ACC postgraduate scholarship recipients," said ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips, Ph.D. "Each one of these individuals represents what's best in college athletics, and I'm extremely proud of their amazing accomplishments thus far. We look forward to following what is sure to be a meaningful and successful future as they move ahead in their respective careers."

The Weaver-James-Corrigan-Swofford and Jim and Pat Thacker postgraduate scholarships are awarded to selected student-athletes who intend to pursue a graduate degree following completion of their undergraduate requirements. Each recipient will receive $6,000 toward his or her graduate education. Those honored have performed with distinction in both the classroom and their respective sport, while demonstrating exemplary conduct in the community.

This year's class of postgraduate scholarship recipients will be highlighted in a one-hour show on ACC Network that will air in May.

Alli Bitting
Bitting, the ACC Field Hockey Co-Scholar Athlete of the Year also earned 2021 ACC Defensive Player of the Year honors. The three-time National Field Hockey Coaches Association All-American, Bitting earned her degree in sport administration in December. The Hummelstown, Pennsylvania native was a first-team NFHCA All-American this past season after being named to the second team in 2019 and 2020. Bitting was a mainstay for a Louisville team that allowed just 18 goals in 20 games (an ACC-leading .900 goals allowed per contest) while posting seven shutouts.

Academically, Bitting is a four-time NFHCA National Academic Team and ACC Honor Roll selection and has been named to the Dean's List and AD Honor Roll every semester she attended Louisville.

Michaela Dukes
Dukes has lived out the Cinderella story as a Cardinal rower. She began her career as a novice making all the way to the Varsity 8 boat. In the COVID-shortened season, Michaela rowed V8 at Oak Ridge, V8 versus Notre Dame, V8 at the Big Ten Invitational, and V8 at Michigan/Iowa meet. At ACCs, she rowed in the V8 boat that won the Petit Final.

An excellent student, she was named to the Athletic Director's Honor Roll, was a Red & Black Scholar, as well as being named as both a Fall 2020 and Spring 2021 Dean's Scholar. She is also a CRCA Scholar Athlete. She belongs to Chi Alpha Sigma a nonprofit organization established to recognize college student-athletes who excel both on and off the field of competition. She was named to the ACC Honor Roll and All-ACC Academic.

Gabriela Leon
One of the most accomplished athletes in program history, Gabriela Leon is a two-time NCAA All American and nine-time All-ACC team honoree. The Grand Rapids, Mich. native holds the women's indoor pole vault record with a height of 4.42m (14-6) set at the Hokie Invitational on Jan. 21, a qualifying mark that currently ranks fifth in the nation. The redshirt senior has recorded a top-five pole vault finish at every ACC Championships she has competed in and enters postseason competition this season with two event wins and a top-three pole vault finish in each meet.

Leon is a four-time ACC Honor Roll selection and earned All-ACC Academic Indoor Track and Field Team distinction in 2021. The Health and Human Performance – Exercise Science major has been named to the Athletic Director's Honor Roll every semester since arriving on campus and is a four-year Red & Black Scholar honoree.

Kianna Smith
Smith is one of 10 finalists for the Ann Meyers-Drysdale Award, which recognizes the top shooting guard in the country. She was named ACC Player of the Week following wins at Miami, Clemson and Syracuse after averaging 15.0 points per game and dishing out 27 assists to just one turnover. She was also named the MVP of the Basketball Hall of Fame Women's Showcase after leading the Cardinals to a win over No. 6 UConn. The 1,000-point scorer graduated in the spring of 2021 with a B.S.B. in Marketing. She is currently pursuing her MBA and is on track to graduate this summer.

Academically, Smith is a four-time member of the Dean's List, three times she has been named a Red & Black Scholar and twice to the ACC Honor Roll. Last year, in her first season at Louisville, she was named to the All-ACC Academic Team.

The following student-athletes will be recognized as 2022 ACC Postgraduate Scholars:
Name, Institution, Sport, Major
Marnelle Garraud, Boston College, Women's Basketball, Management - Information Systems/Business Analytics
Bolang Meng, Boston College, Men's Fencing, Management - Finance/Business Analytics
Eleanor Mataya, Boston College, Softball, Management - Accounting for Finance and Consulting/Business Analytics
George Marks, Clemson, Men's Soccer, Psychology
Camden Pereira, Clemson, Softball, Psychology
Sydney Dawson, Clemson, Women's Soccer, Psychology
Tess Boade, Duke, Women's Soccer, International Comparative Studies
Josh Finesilver, Duke, Wrestling, Evolutionary Anthropology
Cooper Stinson, Duke, Baseball, Biology
Gabrielle Carle, Florida State, Women's Soccer, Exercise Physiology
Izaak Bastian, Florida State, Men's Swimming and Diving, Athletic Training
Kelechi Nwanaga, Florida State, Women's Cross Country/Track & Field, Economics
Lotta-Maj Lahtinen, Georgia Tech, Women's Basketball, Business Administration
Mikaila Dowd, Georgia Tech, Women's Volleyball, Biomedical Engineering
Kyle Barone, Georgia Tech, Men's Swimming & Diving, Computer Science
Gabriela Leon, Louisville, Women's Cross Country/Track & Field, Health and Human Performance-Exercise Science
Alli Bitting, Louisville, Field Hockey, Sport Administration
Selena Fortich, Miami, Women's Soccer, Political Science & Criminology
Abigail Schwenger, Miami, Rowing, Elementary & Exceptional Education and Spanish
Priscilla Hernandez, Miami, Women's Volleyball, Management
Abby Pitcairn , North Carolina, Field Hockey, Biology
Meredith Sholder, North Carolina, Field Hockey, Biology
Zach Tucci , North Carolina, Men's Lacrosse, Business Administration
Eric Knowles, NC State, Men's Swimming and Diving, Materials Science and Engineering
Trent Hidlay, NC State, Wrestling, Business Administration
Sophie Hansson, NC State, Women's Swimming & Diving, Business Administration
Andrew J. Alexander, Notre Dame, Men's Cross Country/Track & Field, Management (MSM)
Maddy Denner, Notre Dame, Women's Cross Country/Track & Field, Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics (ACMS)
Philip K. Quinton, Notre Dame, Men's Soccer, Political Science
Jackson Walti, Pitt, Men's Soccer, Sustainable Engineering
Felix Wolter, Pitt, Men's Cross Country/Track & Field, Computer Science
Meghan Root, Syracuse, Women's Soccer, Public Relations
Polina Shemanova, Syracuse, Women's Volleyball, Communication & Rhetorical Studies & Linguistic Studies
Rebecca Adeline Jarrett, Virginia, Women's Soccer, Media Studies & American Studies - popular/visual culture concentration, DMP (Distinguished Major Program)
Courtlynne Tate Caskin, Virginia, Women's Lacrosse, Media Studies
Owayne Owens, Virginia, Men's Cross Country/Track & Field, Sociology
Emily Gray, Virginia Tech, Women's Soccer, Sports Media and Analytics
Patrick Forrest, Virginia Tech, Men's Cross Country/Track & Field, Management
Tyreke Sapp, Virginia Tech, Men's Cross Country/Track & Field, Communications & Public Relations
Shayla Brianna Smart, Wake Forest, Women's Soccer, Health and Exercise Science
Zach Facioni, Wake Forest, Men's Cross Country/Track & Field, Economics
Anna Maria Brylin, Wake Forest, Women's Tennis, Finance

Jim & Pat Thacker Scholarship Recipients
Name, Institution, Sport, Major
Michaela Dukes, Louisville, Rowing, Biology
Olivia Miller, Pitt, Women's Gymnastics, Rehabilitation Science
Claire Cooke, Syracuse, Field Hockey, Human Development and Family Science

Honorary Scholarship Nominees
Name, Institution, Sport, Major
Marc McLaughlin, Boston College, Men's Ice Hockey, Management - Finance / Management and Leadership
T. Jacob Bridgeman, Clemson, Men's Golf, Management
Gina Kim, Duke, Women's Golf, Psychology
Jenna Johnson, Florida State, Women's Beach Volleyball, Biomaterials and Polymers
Nicole Fegans, Georgia Tech, Women's Cross Country/ Track & Field, Business Administration
Julia Poole, NC State, Women's Swimming & Diving, Communication
Kianna Smith, Louisville, Women's Basketball, Master of Business Administration
Rachel S. Tanczos, Notre Dame, Women's Cross Country/ Track & Field, Non-Degree
Cal Adomitis, Pittsburgh, Football, Economics

Released in conjunction with the ACC

University of Louisville Athletics

Four Cardinals Earn ACC Postgraduate Scholarship Awards

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Players Mentioned

Alli Bitting

Michaela Dukes

Gabriela Leon

Kianna Smith

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