Three Huskers Named Academic All-Americans

Three University of Nebraska student-athletes earned Google Cloud Academic All-America honors when the College Sports Information Directors of America announced its NCAA Division I At-Large award winners on Friday, June 21. The trio of awards move Nebraska's nation-leading Academic All-America total to 336 all-time across all sports.

Four-time All-American and 2018 NCAA vault runner-up Anton Stephenson (Fishers, Indiana) from the Husker men's gymnastics program captured first-team CoSIDA Academic All-America accolades. The 2019 Nebraska Male Student-Athlete of the Year, Stephenson posted a 3.97 grade-point average as a nutrition and health sciences major. An All-American on vault and in the all-around as a senior for the Huskers in 2019, Stephenson led Coach Chuck Chmelka's team to a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships - its best team showing since 1999.

A three-time Big Ten vault champion and a Big Ten parallel bars champion during his career, Stephenson was Nebraska's Big Ten Medal of Honor winner this season. He was also honored by the conference as the winner of both a Wayne Duke Postgraduate Scholarship and a Big Ten Postgraduate Scholarship. He was a two-time Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection and named a Nebraska Outstanding Scholar in 2019.

Stephenson is the 13th Husker men's gymnast in history to claim CoSIDA Academic All-America honors and the first since Ethan Lottman earned second-team accolades in 2015. He is the men's gymnastics team's first first-team honoree since Stephen Tetrault in 2008. Overall, the men's gymnastics team has earned 17 CoSIDA Academic All-America awards.

Lindsay Helferich became just the third women's swimmer in Nebraska history to claim CoSIDA Academic All-America honors. Helferich (Odessa, Texas), who graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA as a civil engineering major, joins first-teamer Courtney Jensen (2000) and third-teamer Kaitlin Arntz (2010) as the only Husker female swimmers to earn Academic All-America awards from CoSIDA. Helferich, who was honored as a Nebraska Outstanding Scholar, was a two-time Big Ten Distinguished Scholar and a three-team Academic All-Big Ten selection for the Huskers. One of the hardest working swimmers for Coach Pablo Morales' Husker program as well, the sprint freestyler set her career best in the 100 free in the NCAA Last Chance Meet to close her Husker career.

Marina Cozac from the women's tennis team wrapped up the new trio of Husker Academic All-Americans by capturing third-team honors. Cozac (Chicago, Illinois) posted a perfect 4.0 GPA as a mathematics major while also playing out of the heart of Nebraska's dual lineup. A Nebraska Outstanding Scholar, Cozac was an Academic All-Big Ten selection as a senior for Coach Scott Jacobson's program. Cozac becomes just the second Nebraska women's tennis player in history to earn CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, joining Imke Reimers (First Team, 2008; Second Team, 2007).