Four Tulsa Student-Athletes Receive American Athletic Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year Awards
7/29/2020 10:00:00 AM | Tulsa Hurricane
Caitlin Klopfer Named the AAC’s Female Athlete of the Year
IRVING, Texas –– The American Athletic Conference today announced the league's scholar-athlete of the year recipients for the 2019-20 academic year.
The University of Tulsa student-athletes garnered four sport specific scholar-athlete honors while also earning the overall scholar-athlete award for the league's female sports. It marked the second consecutive year that Tulsa has had four AAC scholar-athlete award winners.
In the six-year history of Tulsa's membership in The American, a total of 16 Golden Hurricane student-athletes have now been recognized as their particular sports recipient of the scholar-athlete of the year award.
Cross-country and track star Caitlin Klopfer was selected as The American's Female Scholar Athlete of the Year, while also earning scholar-athlete of the year merits for the sport of women's cross-country. Martina Okalova is the women's tennis recipient, Martins Igbanu represents the sport of men's basketball, and Reed Sahadevan received the honor for outdoor track & field.
As The American's Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, Klopfer will receive a $4,000 postgraduate financial scholarship. The individual sport Scholar-Athletes of the Year will receive $2,000 postgraduate scholarships.
A nine-time all-conference selection, Caitlin Klopfer has maintained a 3.951 grade point average as a double major in chemical engineering and French. She led the Hurricane women harriers to their third AAC title in the last six years, a school-best second-place finish at the Midwest Regional and 25th place performance at the NCAA Cross-Country Championships.
Klopfer earned USTFCCCA All-Midwest Region and all-conference honors in the 2019 fall season. She is the first Tulsa student-athlete to be chosen as The American's Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year
The junior was Tulsa's top finisher in six of seven meets this past season. She finished in third place at The American Championship and fifth at the NCAA Midwest Regional.
Tennis student-athlete Martina Okalova was one-half of Tulsa's 2019 doubles All-America duo and is a two-time all-American Athletic Conference performer. An exceptional leader for her team, Okalova has maintained a 3.637 GPA in exercise & sports science with a pre-med track.
Over the last two seasons, including this year's shortened spring season due to COVID-19, Okalova has won 27 singles matches, mostly at the No. 1 position. She has combined with doubles teammate Vera Ploner to post a 48-14 record over the past two seasons, while advancing to the 2019 quarterfinals of the NCAA Doubles Championship.
Martins Igbanu led the Golden Hurricane basketball team to the school's first American Athletic Conference regular-season title in 2020, while averaging a team-leading 13.6 points. Igbanu was named The American's 6th Man of the Year and earned first-team all-conference selection accolades
The 6'8 forward, from Lagos, Nigeria, averaged 16.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, shot 61-percent from the field and 70-percent from the free throw line in 18 games off the bench during the AAC campaign.
Igbanu, who graduated this past May with a cumulative 3.043 GPA in organizational studies, completed his career with 65 double-figure scoring games, nine double-digit rebounding games, seven double-doubles in 126 career games played.
Igbanu's selection marks the second time in Tulsa's six years as a league member that The Hurricane has had the scholar-athlete of the year selection for men's basketball. Shaquille Harrison was the AAC winner in the 2015-16 season.
An integral member of Tulsa's American Athletic Conference and Midwest Regional Champion cross-country team in the fall, Reed Sahadevan has also been a top performer for the Tulsa track team, participating in the 1,500-meters, 3,000m, 5,000m and 3,000m steeplechase.
Sahadevan helped lead the cross-country team to a 5th place finish at the NCAA Championships. A three-time all-conference performer, Sahadevan posted eight career finishes within the top-10 for the outdoor 3,000-meter steeplechase.
Sahadevan has maintained a 4.00 grade point average in finance.
All four of Tulsa's scholar-athlete winners were also named to Tulsa's Ultimate Team for the 2019-20 academic year. The Ultimate Team award recognizes TU's top-10 student-athletes based on academic achievement, athletic success, campus involvement and community outreach.
Selections for the Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards are made by the faculty athletic representatives on the basis of academic credentials and athletic performance. Each conference school may nominate one student-athlete who has achieved senior academic standing as determined by the institution. A winner is chosen from each of the conference's 22 sponsored sports in addition to men's and women's at-large selections from sports not sponsored by the conference.
The University of Tulsa student-athletes garnered four sport specific scholar-athlete honors while also earning the overall scholar-athlete award for the league's female sports. It marked the second consecutive year that Tulsa has had four AAC scholar-athlete award winners.
In the six-year history of Tulsa's membership in The American, a total of 16 Golden Hurricane student-athletes have now been recognized as their particular sports recipient of the scholar-athlete of the year award.
Cross-country and track star Caitlin Klopfer was selected as The American's Female Scholar Athlete of the Year, while also earning scholar-athlete of the year merits for the sport of women's cross-country. Martina Okalova is the women's tennis recipient, Martins Igbanu represents the sport of men's basketball, and Reed Sahadevan received the honor for outdoor track & field.
As The American's Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, Klopfer will receive a $4,000 postgraduate financial scholarship. The individual sport Scholar-Athletes of the Year will receive $2,000 postgraduate scholarships.
A nine-time all-conference selection, Caitlin Klopfer has maintained a 3.951 grade point average as a double major in chemical engineering and French. She led the Hurricane women harriers to their third AAC title in the last six years, a school-best second-place finish at the Midwest Regional and 25th place performance at the NCAA Cross-Country Championships.
Klopfer earned USTFCCCA All-Midwest Region and all-conference honors in the 2019 fall season. She is the first Tulsa student-athlete to be chosen as The American's Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year
The junior was Tulsa's top finisher in six of seven meets this past season. She finished in third place at The American Championship and fifth at the NCAA Midwest Regional.
Tennis student-athlete Martina Okalova was one-half of Tulsa's 2019 doubles All-America duo and is a two-time all-American Athletic Conference performer. An exceptional leader for her team, Okalova has maintained a 3.637 GPA in exercise & sports science with a pre-med track.
Over the last two seasons, including this year's shortened spring season due to COVID-19, Okalova has won 27 singles matches, mostly at the No. 1 position. She has combined with doubles teammate Vera Ploner to post a 48-14 record over the past two seasons, while advancing to the 2019 quarterfinals of the NCAA Doubles Championship.
Martins Igbanu led the Golden Hurricane basketball team to the school's first American Athletic Conference regular-season title in 2020, while averaging a team-leading 13.6 points. Igbanu was named The American's 6th Man of the Year and earned first-team all-conference selection accolades
The 6'8 forward, from Lagos, Nigeria, averaged 16.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, shot 61-percent from the field and 70-percent from the free throw line in 18 games off the bench during the AAC campaign.
Igbanu, who graduated this past May with a cumulative 3.043 GPA in organizational studies, completed his career with 65 double-figure scoring games, nine double-digit rebounding games, seven double-doubles in 126 career games played.
Igbanu's selection marks the second time in Tulsa's six years as a league member that The Hurricane has had the scholar-athlete of the year selection for men's basketball. Shaquille Harrison was the AAC winner in the 2015-16 season.
An integral member of Tulsa's American Athletic Conference and Midwest Regional Champion cross-country team in the fall, Reed Sahadevan has also been a top performer for the Tulsa track team, participating in the 1,500-meters, 3,000m, 5,000m and 3,000m steeplechase.
Sahadevan helped lead the cross-country team to a 5th place finish at the NCAA Championships. A three-time all-conference performer, Sahadevan posted eight career finishes within the top-10 for the outdoor 3,000-meter steeplechase.
Sahadevan has maintained a 4.00 grade point average in finance.
All four of Tulsa's scholar-athlete winners were also named to Tulsa's Ultimate Team for the 2019-20 academic year. The Ultimate Team award recognizes TU's top-10 student-athletes based on academic achievement, athletic success, campus involvement and community outreach.
Selections for the Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards are made by the faculty athletic representatives on the basis of academic credentials and athletic performance. Each conference school may nominate one student-athlete who has achieved senior academic standing as determined by the institution. A winner is chosen from each of the conference's 22 sponsored sports in addition to men's and women's at-large selections from sports not sponsored by the conference.
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