National Champions, Olympians Headline 82 Husker Grads

An impressive group of 82 Husker student-athletes who achieved at the highest levels both athletically and academically during their college careers will earn degrees this weekend during the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s commencement ceremonies. Graduate commencement is set for Friday at 3 p.m. at Pinnacle Bank Arena, before undergraduate commencements at PBA on Saturday at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. 

The elite group is powered by 10 student-athletes who combined for 23 All-America awards in collegiate competition during their careers. The class features two-time NCAA champion Axelina Johansson (shot put, 2023, 2025) and NCAA runner-up Brock Hardy (wrestling, 141, 2025), along with four-time All-American and 2024 Nebraska Male Athlete of the Year Till Steinforth (decathlon/heptathlon). 

Johansson and Steinforth also finished among the top 16 in their events at the 2024 Paris Olympics, while combining for four College Sports Communicators Academic All-America awards so far in their Husker careers. Nebraska soccer standout Sarah Weber added a fifth Academic All-America honor to Nebraska’s class of graduates.

Steinforth and Johansson lead a list of 22 student-athletes from the men’s and women’s track and field program set to earn their degrees on Saturday. The impressive list includes three-time All-American and two-time Big Ten long jump champion Lishanna Ilves, 2024 javelin All-American Eniko Sara and 2023 Big Ten triple jump champion Lotavia Brown.

A strong collection of six current Husker baseball players also will earn their degrees while competing on the field against Purdue in Nebraska’s final regular-season series of 2025. The six Huskers were key contributors in Nebraska’s run to the 2024 Big Ten Tournament title, including all-tournament selection Gabe Swansen, who joined Cayden Brumbaugh, Joshua Overbeek and Drew Christo in playing major roles in Nebraska’s biggest comeback in 15 seasons in last night’s 11-9 win at Purdue. Jackson Brockett, who threw Nebraska’s first nine-inning no-hitter in 70 years against Kansas State last season, and Tyler Stone also continue to play roles for the Huskers this year.

Big Ten Player and Pitcher of the Year Jordy Bahl headlines a group of six Nebraska softball players claiming their degrees while the Huskers compete in the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional. Bahl, a two-time NCAA champion and two-time All-American, was the Most Outstanding Player of the 2023 Women’s College World Series. One of 10 finalists for the USA Softball/ESPN Collegiate Player of the Year award in 2025, Bahl hit a pair of home runs to lead the Huskers to victory over UConn on Friday afternoon. She is joined by current teammates Ava Bredwell, Olivia DiNardo, McKinley Malecha and Haidyn Warner in the graduating class.

Brock Hardy, the NCAA runner-up at 141 pounds, joins fellow All-American and Big Ten champion Silas Allred among three Husker wrestlers in the graduating class. Hardy, a three-time All-American was the 2025 Big Ten champion, while Allred claimed his first All-America award in 2025 after winning the 2023 Big Ten 197-pound title.They helped the Huskers to the best team finish in school history by taking NCAA runner-up honors in Philadelphia in March.

Stanley Morgan Jr., who spent four seasons as an active NFL wide receiver from 2019 through 2022, following his four seasons at Nebraska (2015-18) also earned his degree. The native of New Orleans, La., who was a four-year player for the Cincinnati Bengals, also had NFL contracts with the New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans.  

Morgan is one of eight former or current Husker football players to earn degrees, joining Michael Booker III, Derek Branch, Grant Buda, Alex Bullock, Barret Liebentritt, Joseph Mancino and Maurice Mazzccua Jr.

The Nebraska men’s and women’s gymnastics teams will be represented by 11 graduates in the May class, including 2025 Big Ten champions Yanni Chronopoulos (still rings) and Emma Spence (uneven bars). Both were also alternates on the 2024 Canadian Olympic teams. Chronopoulos earned All-America honors for the first time in 2025, while his men’s gymnastics teammate Christopher Hiser captured his second All-America award on still rings in 2025 to help the Huskers to a fourth-place team finish at the NCAA Championships.

The final All-American in Nebraska’s graduating class is bowler Anna Callan, who helped the Huskers advance to the 2025 NCAA semifinals.

The Nebraska women’s basketball program, which made its third NCAA Tournament appearance in the past four seasons in 2025, features three graduates led by four-time All-Big Ten center Alexis Markowski. The men’s basketball team adds four graduates, including King of the Crown Juwan Gary, who helped the Huskers to a second straight 20-win season and a postseason tournament title at the College Basketball Crown.

Academic All-American Sarah Weber, who plays professionally for Racing Louisville FC, leads a group of six Husker soccer student-athletes in this spring’s class of graduates, while Maisie Boesiger represents the NU volleyball program.

The May graduates came from near and far to call Nebraska home during their careers. The group came to Lincoln from 25 states, including 20 native Nebraskans, while 17 more Huskers journeyed to Nebraska from 11 foreign countries (Canada, Colombia, Denmark, England, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Italy, Jamaica, Japan and Sweden).

Nebraska continues to feature one of the highest graduation rates in the country, while leading the Big Ten with 366 CSC Academic All-Americans and NCAA Top 10 Award winners (18) across all sports.

May 2025 Nebraska Student-Athlete Graduates (82)
Silas Allred, Wrestling (Anderson, Indiana), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Jordyn Bahl, Softball (Papillion, Nebraska), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Florence Belzile, Soccer (Montreal, Quebec, Canada), Psychology
Caterina Bisiacchi, Swimming & Diving (Trieste, Italy), Applied Science-Master’s
Maisie Boesiger, Volleyball (Firth, Nebraska), Advertising & Public Relations
Michael Booker III, Football (Grand Prairie, Texas), Marketing
Derek Branch, Football (Lincoln, Nebraska), Management
Ava Bredwell, Softball (Shawnee, Kansas), Psychology
Jax Brockett, Baseball (Omaha, Nebraska), Management
Lotavia Brown, Women’s Track & Field (St. Ann, Jamaica), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Cayden Brumbaugh, Baseball (Edmond, Oklahoma), Management
Grant Buda, Football (Lincoln, Nebraska), Biological Sciences
Alex Bullock, Football (Omaha, Nebraska), Management
Anna Callan, Bowling (La Crosse, Wisconsin), Management
Eric Carothers, Men’s Cross Country (Fishers, Indiana), Earth & Atmospheric Sciences-Master’s
Drew Christo, Baseball (Elkhorn, Nebraska), Biological Sciences
Yanni Chronopoulos, Men’s Gymnastics (Milton, Ontario, Canada), Criminology & Criminal Justice
Kylie Clark-Fox, Women’s Track & Field (Lithia, Florida), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Olivia DiNardo, Softball (San Mateo, California), Psychology
Sam Easley, Men’s Track & Field (Lincoln, Nebraska), Accounting
Cammy Garabian, Women’s Track & Field (Seekonk, Massachusetts), Applied Science-Master’s
Juwan Gary, Men’s Basketball (Columbia, South Carolina), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Genesis Gibson, Women’s Gymnastics (Prosper, Texas), Criminology & Criminal Justice
Jeff Grace III, Men’s Basketball (Elmhurst, Illinois), Sports Media & Communication
Ayzhia Hall, Women’s Gymnastics (Rogers, Arkansas), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Maia Hall, Swimming & Diving (Whitby, England), Accounting
Brock Hardy, Wrestling (Brigham City, Utah), Psychology
Roni Hietaranta, Men’s Tennis (Lappeenranta, Finland), Psychology
Christopher Hiser, Men’s Gymnastics (Longmeadow, Massachusetts), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Lishanna Ilves, Women’s Track & Field (Koeru, Estonia), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Cale Jacobsen, Men’s Basketball (Ashland, Nebraska), Marketing
Lars Johann, Men’s Tennis (Saarbruecken, Germany), Management
Axelina Johansson, Women’s Track & Field (Hok, Sweden), Graphic Design
Sam Kirchner, Men’s Track & Field/Cross Country (Omaha, Nebraska), Management
Katie Kuenemann, Women’s Gymnastics (Longview, Texas), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Gwenyth Lane, Soccer (Lincoln, Nebraska), Civil Engineering
Barret Liebentritt, Football (Omaha, Nebraska), Biological Sciences
Madison Lloyd, Swimming & Diving (Houston, Texas), Psychology/Sociology
McKenna Lovehaug, Women’s Track & Field/Cross Country (Fargo, North Dakota), Nutrition & Health Sciences
McKinley Malecha, Softball (Lakeville, Minnesota), Management/Marketing
Joseph Mancino, Football (Holmdel, New Jersey), Marketing
Kendall Mangel, Softball (Chino, California), Psychology
Alexis Markowski, Women’s Basketball (Lincoln, Nebraska), Management
Maurice Mazzccua Jr., Football (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), Accountancy-Master’s
Sophia McClelland, Women’s Gymnastics (Camarillo, California), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Sydney McCracken, Swimming & Diving (Kennett Square, Pennsylvania), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Brynna McQuillen, Women’s Track & Field/Cross Country (Casa Grande, Arizona), Communication Sciences & Disorders/Psychology
Cami Merickel, Women’s Track & Field/Cross Country (Phoenix, Arizona), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Brooklyn Miller, Women’s Track & Field (Wathena, Kansas), Management
A.J. Morgan, Men’s Gymnastics (Lincoln, Nebraska), Sports Media & Communication
Stanley Morgan Jr., Football (New Orleans, Louisiana), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Kendall Moriarty, Women’s Basketball (Wheaton, Illinois), Advertising & Public Relations/Sports Media & Communication
Calvin Mueller, Men’s Tennis (Bruchkoebel, Germany), Business Administration
Reid Nelson, Men’s Track & Field (Elkhorn, Nebraska), Accounting
Joshua Overbeek, Baseball (Cincinnati, Ohio), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Haley Peterson, Soccer (Lincoln, Nebraska), Individualized Program of Studies
Tyrell Pierce, Men’s Track & Field (Auburn, Alabama), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Maja Pietrowicz, Women’s Tennis (Clinton Township, Michigan), Business-Master’s
Alberte Rimdal, Women’s Basketball (Koge, Denmark), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Halle Rourke, Women’s Gymnastics (Waverly, Nebraska), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Cortez Ruiz, Men’s Track & Field (Pasco, Washington), Law
Holden Ruse, Men’s Track & Field (Adams, Nebraska), Civil Engineering
Eniko Sara, Women’s Track & Field (Langley, British Columbia, Canada), Microbiology
Niko Schultz, Men’s Track & Field (Plainfield, Illinois), Marketing
Abigail Schwarz, Soccer (Bennington, Nebraska), Marketing
Emma Simpton, Women’s Gymnastics (Dallas, Texas), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Emma Spence, Women’s Gymnastics (Cambridge, Ontario, Canada), Communication Studies
Till Steinforth, Men’s Track & Field (Saxony-Anhalt, Germany), Architectural Studies
Tyler Stone, Baseball (Scottsdale, Arizona), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Gabe Swansen, Baseball (Johnston, Iowa), Management
Miu Takahashi, Women’s Golf (Nasu-machi, Japan), Sports Media & Communication
Adam Thebeau, Wrestling (Belleville, Illinois), Finance
Gerrit Twitero, Men’s Track & Field (McQueeney, Texas), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Ahron Ulis, Men’s Basketball (Chicago, Illinois), Child, Youth & Family Studies
Andrea Velez, Women’s Golf (Pereira, Colombia), Finance
Cece Villa, Soccer (Altoona, Iowa), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Arianna Walker, Women’s Track & Field (Chicago, Illinois), Psychology
Favour Wanjoku, Women’s Track & Field (Rock Springs, Wyoming), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Haidyn Warner, Softball (Oro Valley, Arizona), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Frankie Webb, Swimming & Diving (Cambridge, England), Psychology
Sarah Weber, Soccer (Gretna, Nebraska), Nutrition & Health Sciences
Travis Wong, Men’s Gymnastics (Miami, Florida), Management