University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Nelson, Chavez named Big Sky Scholar-Athletes of the Year
6/30/2020 3:50:00 PM | Football, General, Women's Track & Field, Track & Field
Football's Luke Nelson and Track and FIeld's Kylie Chavez earn UNC's Big Sky Scholar-Athlete of the Year
FARMINGTON, Utah – The Big Sky Conference announced its Scholar-Athletes of the Year on Tuesday with Northern Colorado's Luke Nelson and Kylie Chavez representing the Bears.
Both Nelson and Chavez earned honors for their academic success earlier this year being named CoSIDA All-District honorees. Nelson went on to be named CoSIDA second team Academic All-America honors.
Luke Nelson became the football program's first Academic All-American since Reed Doughty in 2005. On the field, the Criminology and Criminal Justice major led the Bears with 112 tackles adding in 1.5 for a loss, an interception, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. Nelson was near the top of the Big Sky in tackles per game with 9.3 to rank seventh. He earned All-Big Sky honorable mention honors from the conference.
Chavez graduated from Northern Colorado with a 4.0 while studying Chemistry. Her high academic achievements and excellence for the track and field team earned her the award.
One of the top jumpers in the Big Sky, Chavez finished in eighth place in the triple jump of the Indoor Track and Field Championships and 11th in the long jump. Her top jumps of the year came against the stiffest competition she faced recording a height of 1.65m at the Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational and a distance of 5.66m at the Tyson Invitational for the long jump.
Both Nelson and Chavez earned honors for their academic success earlier this year being named CoSIDA All-District honorees. Nelson went on to be named CoSIDA second team Academic All-America honors.
Luke Nelson became the football program's first Academic All-American since Reed Doughty in 2005. On the field, the Criminology and Criminal Justice major led the Bears with 112 tackles adding in 1.5 for a loss, an interception, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. Nelson was near the top of the Big Sky in tackles per game with 9.3 to rank seventh. He earned All-Big Sky honorable mention honors from the conference.
Chavez graduated from Northern Colorado with a 4.0 while studying Chemistry. Her high academic achievements and excellence for the track and field team earned her the award.
One of the top jumpers in the Big Sky, Chavez finished in eighth place in the triple jump of the Indoor Track and Field Championships and 11th in the long jump. Her top jumps of the year came against the stiffest competition she faced recording a height of 1.65m at the Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational and a distance of 5.66m at the Tyson Invitational for the long jump.
To be eligible for this award, the student-athlete must have exhausted his or her intercollegiate athletic eligibility and/or be a member of the graduating class, earned a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.2 (on a 4.0) scale, been a participant in a Big Sky-sponsored sport, completed at least two (2) years of intercollegiate competition at the institution, and been a letter winner.
To stay up to date on all things UNC Athletics, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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