The 2019-20 University of Hawai`i Hilo student-athletes will be remembered for having their seasons and classroom work cut short due to COVID-19. But now, they will also have the memory of powering through those obstacles to post the highest overall athletic department GPA since joining the Pacific West Conference in the late 1990's. 

All 12 Vulcan teams and over 200 student-athletes combined for a Grade Point Average of 3.191 for the 2019-20 academic year. That tops last year's average of 3.078, which was the previous best. The 2017-18 Vulcans checked in at 2.949. Additionally, ten of the twelve UH Hilo teams bettered their GPA's from a year ago.

"I cannot be more proud of our student-athletes and their academic accomplishments," said Vulcan athletic director Patrick Guillen. "The daily schedule of going to class, practicing and competing is incredibly demanding, not to mention the time spent traveling. For them to achieve this success is nothing short of amazing." 

Record numbers were set in the conference as well, where Point Loma won the annual PacWest Academic Achievement Award with an all-time best GPA of 3.499. All 12 PacWest teams improved from the year previous, and 11 of the 12 recorded their highest GPA since joining the conference. 

"I am so proud of our PacWest student-athletes and their extraordinary academic work this year," Commissioner Bob Hogue said. ""During a time when we were all forced into the most challenging of circumstances, our student-athletes rose up in record-breaking fashion to score one of their biggest collegiate victories ever," Hogue added.

At UH Hilo, the Ramon Goya Academic Team of the Year is the Vulcan Women's Basketball team, which had a team GPA of 3.541 for the 2019-20 academic year. The 2018-19 Goya winner, the Men's Tennis team, was close behind with a 3.482 GPA. Half of the Vulcan teams had a 3.3 GPA or better, including Men's Golf (3.427), Women's Cross Country (3.372), Women's Soccer (3.368) and Women's Tennis (3.302). 

The Joe and Harriet Estrella Male Scholar Athlete of the Year is golfer Evan Merrier. The Canadian has a 3.81 cumulative GPA through his junior year in his major of General Business. The Estrella award is given annually to the male athlete that is a junior or above in class standing, has at least five semesters at UHH and competed in a match or game action this year. 

The Sakai and Harue Wakakuwa Female Scholar Athlete of the Year is soccer player Hedda Bjerklund. The senior from Norway came to UHH in the Fall of 2017 after playing one season at the University of Pacific (Division I). She graduated with a 3.87 GPA in Psychology. Like the Estrella award, the Wakakuwa winner must be at least a junior with five or more semesters at UHH and be an active member of the team.

The individual UHH Scholar Athletes by Team are listed below. To claim this award, you have to be a sophomore or better, and have completed at least three semesters at UHH (first-year transfers not eligible). All GPA's listed are cumulative. For Billi Derleth (softball), it was her third award. Second-time winners were Evan Merrier (men's golf), Selvin Sandoval (men's soccer) and Hedda Bjerklund (women's soccer). Men's tennis player Luca Checchia has a perfect 4.0 GPA through four semesters at UHH, and runner Olivia Jarvis has a 3.98 GPA through her sophomore year. 

"This shows the drive, determination, commitment and desire to succeed that will pay huge dividends in the future," Guillen added. "Congratulations on a fantastic year in the classroom."

Baseball: Jaron Sugimoto, 3.83 GPA, Redshirt Sophomore, Business Administration, Waipahu, Hawai`i
Men's Basketball: Kupaa Harrison, 3.54 GPA, Senior, Psychology, Kailua, Hawai`i
Women's Basketball: Sara Shimizu, 3.76 GPA, Junior, Kinesiology, Sacramento, California
Women's Cross Country: Olivia Jarvis, 3.98 GPA, Sophomore, Environmental Science, Oceanside, California
Men's Golf: Evan Merrier, 3.81 GPA, Junior, General Business, Surrey, British Columbia**
Women's Golf: Kaelyn Uchida, 3.70 GPA, Sophomore, Psychology, Hilo, Hawai`i
Men's Soccer: Selvin Sandoval, 3.85 GPA, Senior, Kinesiology, Compton, California**
Women's Soccer: Hedda Bjerklund, 3.87 GPA, Senior, Psychology, Fjedingby, Norway**
Softball: Billi Derleth, 3.81 GPA, Senior, Kinesiology, Huntington Beach, California***
Men's Tennis: Luca Checchia, 4.00 GPA, Sophomore, General Business, Valencia, Spain
Women's Tennis: Sandra Dafincescu, 3.81 GPA, Junior, General Business, Ramnicu Valcea, Romania
Volleyball: Bria Beale, 3.85 GPA, Junior, Communications, Eastvale, California

Two-Time Winner**
Three-Time Winner***