FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. -- Football player Austin Hasquet, distance runner Caleb Hoover, soccer player Diane Buzzard and tennis player Johanna Vang shared the top honors as Northern Arizona's 37th annual Golden Eagle Awards.
Hasquet and Hoover shared Male Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors, while Buzzard and Vang shared Female Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year distinction. A total of 191 NAU student-athletes were honored for maintaining grade-point averages of 3.0 or better.
Hasquet, a linebacker from Peoria, graduated in December with 3.97 GPA and a degree in biomedical science. He was a two-time first-team Academic All-American and an all-Big Sky Conference selection who finished as the school's all-time leader in tackles with 256.
"It's truly humbling," Hasquet said. "I never thought I'd do something like this. I'm truly proud to represent NAU and I try to do things the right way, every day as Coach (Jerome) Souers says. This honor is a reflection of all the people -- my coaches, my parents and all the administrators -- who put their time into making me the person I am."
Hoover, from Joplin, Mo., will graduate in May with a degree in biomedical science. He earned Academic All-America honors with a 3.97 GPA, was an All-American in the steeplechase during last season's outdoor track season and an All-American in cross country in the fall.
"It means a lot to me," Hoover said. "It means that everything you've worked for four years was worth it. I try to be at the top, try to be my best and to be recognized for that in the end means quite a lot to me."
Buzzard, from Flagstaff, will earn her degree in civil engineering with a minor in mathematics in May. She has a 3.72 GPA and started every match during her senior season for an NAU team that won its first Big Sky tournament title since 2009.
"It's really an honor," Buzzard said. "It's been a long process and I've had so much support at NAU over the last four years. It's been a really good experience and it's a nice culmination of all the support I've gotten as a student-athlete in athletics."
Vang, from Sollentuna, Sweden, has a perfect 4.0 GPA and will graduate in May with a degree in marketing. She is a three-year captain of the NAU women's tennis team and has career totals of 44 singles wins and 49 doubles wins.
"It's such an honor," Vang said. "I worked so hard in the classroom and on the court. It all accumulated into this award, and it feels good to be recognized for all the hard work."
