Pac-10 Names Chan Scholar Athlete Of The Year
June 24, 2011
WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - One more trophy is headed to the engraver's for Husky senior Venise Chan, as the two-time All-American was named the Pac-10 Women's Tennis Scholar Athlete of the Year for 2010-11. She is the first Husky to earn the honor which began in 2007-08.
The honor caps off an historic career for Chan. The Hong Kong native was an ITA All-American on the court in singles in 2010, and in both singles and doubles in 2011, finishing both years ranked in the Top-20 in singles. She advanced to the NCAA Round of 16 in singles the past two years and reached the NCAA Quarterfinals in doubles this year with Denise Dy. Her 101 career singles wins is second-most all-time by a Husky, and she was named All-Pac-10 all four years.
In the classroom, Chan was no less successful. She carried a 3.63 cumulative grade point average into her final quarter, majoring in business administration with a marketing focus. Named to the Pac-10 All-Academic First Team each of the past three years, Chan was also named a Capital One Academic All-America Third Team member for the first time this season.
The Pac-10 Scholar Athlete of the Year award requires student-athletes must be a senior (in athletics eligibility) on track to receive a degree, have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher, participate in at least 50% of the scheduled contests in the sport and have a minimum of one year in residence at the institution. Each Pac-10 institution may nominate one individual per sport, and the winners are selected by a committee of Pac-10 staff members at the conclusion of each sport's regular season. The athletic accomplishments of the nominees are a consideration in the voting for the award.
"It is always a challenge selecting the Pac-10 Scholar-Athletes of the Year because there are so many remarkable student-athletes in our Conference," Pac-10 Commissioner Larry Scott said. "The Pac-10 is extremely proud of its heritage of academic and athletic excellence and this group of student-athletes is an example of achieving balance and success at the highest levels."
Scholar-Athletes of the Year in each sport will receive a commemorative award. Toyo Tires, the presenting sponsor, will donate $1,000 to the scholarship funds of the institution's athletic department of each winner in recognition of their accomplishments.
The 2010-11 Pac-10 Scholar-Athletes for spring include:
Chris Metzger, USC - Baseball, 3.78 - linguistics
Jack Dukeminier, Oregon - Men's golf, 4.03 UG/3.88 grad - general business
Pia Halbig, California - Women's golf, 3.67 - media studies
Alex Syverson, Stanford - Men's rowing, 3.70 - economics
Erika Roddy, Stanford - Women's rowing, 3.83 - human biology
Jaak Poldma, USC - Men's tennis, 3.65 - communications & political science
Venise Chan, Washington - Women's tennis, 3.63 - business
administration/marketing
Elliott Heath, Stanford - Men's track & field, 3.58 - mechanical engineering
Kate Niehaus, Stanford - Women's track & field, 4.05 - bioengineering
Lesley Rogers, Arizona State - Softball, 3.80 - sociology
