Huskies committed to courses and competition
From practices to practicums, in the classroom and in the weight room, Huskie Athletics student-athletes like Leah Bohlken and Luke Wandzura are succeeding and exceeding in both parts of the education equation.
They are two of 176 Huskie student-athletes, trainers and managers (46 per cent of the program) who have earned All-Academic status for posting grades of better than 74.5 per cent while completing full course loads of 24 credit units, with Bohlken and Wandzura also achieving national Academic All-Canadian status for averaging more than 80 per cent in their courses.
For Bohlken, it’s the fourth straight year she has achieved U Sports Academic All-Canadian status, following a season in which she led the Huskie women’s hockey team in scoring and was named a league all-star, while also averaging 88.6 per cent in her studies at the University of Saskatchewan (USask).
“It’s quite an honour, said Bohlken, a 22-year-old fifth-year defenceman from Moose Jaw. “Athletics takes up so much time and everybody that has made that (All-Academic) team knows the challenges in receiving those grades, so it is very humbling and I think the university does a great job of recognizing our athletes. It’s a nice pat on the back when they see you are excelling as students and being leaders on the ice, or on the pitch, or on the field, as well as in the classroom.”
Bohlken’s superb season also included being one of the top university players in the country picked to compete for Canada in the World University Games in Russia in March, returning home with a silver medal and with memories to last a lifetime.
“Definitely it was a year to remember, and obviously I couldn’t have done it without my family and friends, and my teammates and classmates,” said Bohlken. “When I went over to Russia, I missed two and half weeks, so I had some classmates sending me notes throughout that time, and my professors were also very good, too. They want you to excel in your sport as well as in school.”
While Bohlken is one of the country’s top female hockey players in U Sports, she is also focused on her future off the ice, after switching from geophysics to computer science last year.
“I would like an IT job with an app development company, that is the area that I am interested in,” said Bohlken. “I know I will be moving on to join the workforce, so to be able to succeed in both academics and sports is very satisfying.”