The Elite 13 Award, formerly the CCAA Championship Scholar Award, recognizes the academic and athletic achievement of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the conference championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers.

Instituted in 2017-18, the award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the final CCAA championship site in each conference-sponsored sport. 

Past Championship Scholar Award Winners


2022-23 Elite 13 Award Winners

Women's Cross Country	Men's Cross Country	Women's Soccer	Men's Soccer	Volleyball
OLIVIA RENFRO San Francisco State	JUSTIN MATTIES Cal State East Bay	MACKENZIE GILL Chico State	ANTON OLOFSSON Cal State LA	SHELBY GRUBBS Cal State LA
SO | Fresno Liberal Studies	SO | Redding Kinesiology	SR | Roseville Psychology	JR | Luleaa, Sweden Business Administration	SR | Newhall Communications
Women's Basketball	Men's Basketball	Women's Golf	Men's Golf	Softball
NICOLE FLENNAUGH Cal State LA	LYLE SUTTON Cal State San Marcos	MORGAN SJOERDSMA Cal State LA	PATRICK ORDONEZ Cal State Dominguez Hills	KAYLEE HULL Cal State Dominguez Hills
JR | Portland, Ore. Television & Film	GR | Rexburg, Idaho MBA	SR | Corona Mathemetics	SO | Fullerton Business Administration	SO | Vista Kinesiology & Biology
	Women's Track & Field	Men's Track & Field	Baseball
	ELISE BARNUM Chico State	TREVOR BOAZ Cal State San Marcos	LUKE NOVITSKE Cal State East Bay
	SO | Sparks, Nev. Child Development	SO | San Diego Communications	SO | Pleasanton Business Administration

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Women's Cross Country

The 2022 CCAA Elite 13 award for women's cross country went to San Francisco State's Olivia Renfro. The sophomore from Fresno is majoring in Liberal Studies at SFSU, and she ran in all four meets in the fall. Her best finish came at the CCAA Preview meet, where she placed 23rd and helped the Gators place third. Renfro is the first SFSU women's cross country student-athlete and second Gator overall to earn a CCAA Elite 13/Championship Scholar Award (started in 2017-18). 
  Men's Cross Country

Justin Matties was named the Elite 13 Award men's cross country winner. The sophomore from Cal State East Bay is majoring in Kinesiology. This season, Matties ran in three meets. He helped the Pioneers place third in the 8k at the San Francisco State Invitational. Matties best finish came at the CCAA Cross Country Championships. Matties is the first Cal State East Bay male in any sport to earn a CCAA Elite 13/Championship Scholar Award. 


 
Women's Soccer

The 2022 CCAA Elite 13 award for women's soccer went to Chico State's Mackenzie Gill. The senior from Roseville is majoring in Psychology at Chico State. Gill led the Wildcats in scoring during the 2022 campaign with four goals and four assists. She played in all 19 matches, making 12 starts. Gill is the second consecutive Chico State women's soccer student-athlete to earn the CCAA Elite 13/Championship Scholar Award and 10th Wildcat overall (started in 2017-18). 

 
Men's Soccer

Anton Olofsson of the Cal State LA men's soccer team helped lead the Golden Eagles to the 2022 CCAA Tournament Championship, winning the CCAA Elite 13 Award along the way. The Luleaa, Sweden native Olofsson appeared in all 20 matches as a midfielder, making nine starts. He posted a goal and three assists in his junior campaign. The Business Administration major is the second consecutive Golden Eagle student-athlete to win CCAA Elite 13/Championship Scholar Award in men's soccer. He is the fourth men's soccer winner from Cal State LA in the six years since the award was established.  



 
Volleyball

For the second straight year, Shelby Grubbs from Cal State LA was selected as the CCAA Elite 13 Award winner. Grubbs has already earned her undergraduate degree in Communications and is currently working on her Master's in Education. The Newhall native started all 27 matches and helped the Golden Eagles win their first CCAA regular-season title since 2005. Grubbs is the only Cal State LA volleyball student-athlete to win the Elite 13 award, and the eighth overall. 

 
Women's Basketball

The 2022-23 Elite 13 Award for women's basketball went to Cal State LA's Nicole Flennaugh. The Portland, Ore. native graduated in three years. She collected her undergraduate degree in Television, Film, and Media Studies in the spring of 2022, and she is now pursuing her master's degree in the same field. On the court, Flennaugh helped lead Cal State LA to a program record 16-CCAA wins and a trip to the NCAA West Regional. She was a WBCA All-American selection this season and set the CCAA record for career 3-pointers. 


 
Men's Basketball

Cal State San Marcos' graduate student Lyle Sutton was selected as the winner of the Elite 13 Award for Men's Basketball. Sutton transferred into CSUSM from Idaho State and will earn three degrees while in San Marcos. He collected his undergraduate degree in Health Science before earning an MBA last year. He is currently working in a post-baccalaureate program. On the court, Sutton was a starter for a team that finished second in the CCAA regular season and earned the program's first back-to-back appearances in the NCAA West Regional. 



 
Men's Golf

Patrick Ordonez is the first Elite 13 Award winner in any sport for Cal State Dominguez Hills. The junior Business Administration major played as the Toros' No. 2 golfer throughout the season. He averaged 73.94 strokes per round and recorded a season-best finish at the NCAA West Region Fall Preview when he shot a 4-under 212. 




 
Women's Golf

Cal State LA's Morgan Sjoerdsma captured Elite 13 honors for Women's Golf for the second consecutive year. The senior Mathematics major maintained the top GPA in the sport while ranking No. 19 in the region with a 75.56 strokes per round average. Sjoerdsma was the Golden Eagles top golfer, and played in the No. 1 position through the season. She won the Sonoma State Fall Invitational, and placed fifth at the SSU Spring Invite and the CCAA Championships.  


Softball

This year's Elite 13 Award for softball went to Cal State Dominguez Hills' Kaylee Hull. The first baseman was not only the conference's leading home run hitter (12). She had the top grade point average of all the student-athletes at the CCAA Softball Tournament. The sophomore (athletically) is majoring in Molecular and Cellular Biology, with a pathway toward Pre-Physical Therapy. Hull helped the Toros win the CCAA Tournament for the first time in program history, and they did it on their own field. 





 
Women's Track & Field

Elise Barnum represents Chico State as the 2023 CCAA Elite 13 Winner for women's track & field. The sophomore Childhood Development major, placed third in the pole vault at the 2023 CCAA Championships after clearing 11-8.5 (3.57m). It was her top mark of the season and for her career. Her efforts helped the Wildcats women's team finish second. 


 
Men's Track & Field

Cal State San Marcos' Trevor Boaz became the first CCAA male student-athlete to collect the CCAA Elite 13 Award in two different sports. After earning the honor first at the 2021 Cross Country Championships, Boaz again had the top grade point average among all individuals in the championship. The Communications major got a late start to his senior season, but managed to run in three meets, including the CCAA Championships. He earned points in the 1500m (8th) and the following week, Boaz posted a career-best time of 3:45.64 at the APU Franson Last Chance Meet. 



 
Baseball

Luke Novitske played a big role in Cal State East Bay putting together its first season over .500 since 2017 and earn a berth in the CCAA Baseball Tournament for the first time since 2016. The third baseman hit .345 with 15 doubles and a team-leading 33 runs batted in. The second team All-CCAA selection reached base in 25 consecutive games and led the Pioneers with 21 multi-hit games. Novitske is a junior (sophomore athletically) Business Administration major with a near 4.0 GPA.