Six Huskers Earn CSCAA Academic Honors

Six Nebraska swimmers and divers claimed Scholar All-America honors from the College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) when the organization announced its annual individual awards on Tuesday.

Six-time All-American Abigail Knapton (Omaha, Neb.) captured first-team CSCAA Scholar All-America accolades for the fourth time in her career. The 2021 Big Ten Champion on both the platform and one-meter dives was also named Nebraska’s Female Student-Athlete of the Year. The 2021 Big Ten Diver of the Meet added honors as Nebraska’s Best Female Athlete across all sports before earning her bachelor’s degree as a psychology major with better than a 3.9 GPA. Knapton capped her academic highlights off by claiming a prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, before finishing in the top eight in both the platform and three-meter diving events at the U.S. Olympic Team Diving Trials.

Knapton was joined on the first-team CSCAA Scholar All-America squad by fellow Big Ten Champion Autumn Haebig, who earned a pair of All-America honors in the pool at the 2021 NCAA Championships. The Grafton, Wis., native took ninth in the 200 free and 14th in the 500 free at the NCAA meet, after winning the 200 freestyle at the 2021 Big Ten Championships. Haebig, who is majoring in advertising and public relations, was also a CSCAA Scholar All-American in 2018. 

Audrey Coffey (Naperville, Ill.) captured CSCAA Scholar All-America honors for the second consecutive season.  The junior set a 14-year-old Nebraska record in the 1,650 freestyle at the 2021 NCAA Championships but just missed All-America honors by finishing 19th. The nutrition and health sciences major also joined Haebig in competition at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Omaha.

Sara Troyer, a junior diver from Goshen, Ind., also produced her second straight first-team CSCAA Scholar All-America award and her third honor overall. The child, youth and family studies major produced a pair of top-10 finishes at the Big Ten Championships, including a third-place finish on the one-meter board. Troyer went on to compete in both the one- and three-meter dives at the NCAA Championships.

Seniors Madison Coughlen (Frisco, Texas) and Izzie Murray (North Bend, Ohio) both claimed honorable-mention CSCAA Scholar All-America awards. Coughlen, a finance major, earned her second straight CSCAA award after capturing first-team honors in 2020. Murray, a biological sciences and environmental studies major, earned honorable-mention accolades for the third consecutive season.

A total of 789 student-athletes across all divisions earned national academic honors from the CSCAA for posting 3.50 grade-point averages or better and being invited to compete at their respective national championships. First-team Scholar All-Americans combined their high GPA with participation in the national championship meet, while second-team/honorable-mention Scholar All-Americans earned both a 3.5 GPA or better and a “B” qualifying standard for nationals or participated at a zone diving meet.