BATON ROUGE — Four LSU student-athletes were recently honored with 2005 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar Awards, as named by Black Issues in Higher Education.
Brandon Bass, Artie Brown, Dianne Harrison and Terin Martinjak were each named Sports Scholars. To be eligible, student-athletes of color must compete in an intercollegiate sport, maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.2 and be active on their campuses or in their communities.
Bass, the 2005 Southeastern Conference Player and Scholar-Athlete of the Year, was a second-team Sports Scholar selection for men’s basketball. While carrying a 3.46 cumulative grade point average, the sophomore forward from Baton Rouge averaged 17.3 points per game and 9.1 rebounds per game with a 56.7 field goal percentage.
A senior on the soccer team, Brown was a first-team Sports Scholar selection. An All-Central Region selection, the Baton Rouge native was a first-team All-SEC and All-Louisiana honoree while leading the Tigers with 14 goals and 31 points. Maintaining a 3.77 cumulative grade point average in kinesiology, Brown earned second-team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District honors in 2005.
Harrison, a junior heptathlete on the women’s track and field team, earned second-team Sports Scholar honors. The Nashville, Tenn., native recorded a personal-best 4,967 points at the LSU Alumni Gold meet last season. A political communications major with a 3.60 cumulative grade point average, Harrison finished seventh in the pentathlon at the SEC Indoor Championships earlier this year.
A junior on the gymnastics team, Martinjak was a first-team Sports Scholar selection. With a 3.50 cumulative grade point average in kinesiology, the Clearwater, Fla., native has been a mainstay in the Tigers’ beam and floor lineups. She scored a season-best 9.950 at Oklahoma on the beam and tied for first place in the floor at Ohio State, scoring a season-best 9.950.
Black Issues in Higher Education established the Sports Scholars Awards to honor undergraduate students of color who have made achieving both academically and athletically a winning combination.
Inspired by tennis legend Arthur Ashe Jr.’s commitment to education as well as his love for the game of tennis, we invite every college and university in the country to participate in this annual awards program by nominating their outstanding sports scholars. In addition to their athletic ability, Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars must exhibit academic excellence and community activism.