NEW YORK (Aug. 13, 2025) – Creighton volleyball star Kendra Wait was named BIG EAST Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, while Villanova track and field standout Liam Murphy was named the BIG EAST Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the league announced on Wednesday. Both Wait and Murphy will receive a $4,000 scholarship, which may be applied to graduate or professional studies. The selection was made by the Conference’s Academic Affairs Committee.
Wait graduated with an undergraduate degree in Nursing, maintaining a perfect 4.0 GPA over her collegiate career at Creighton. The senior earned College Sports Communicators Academic All-District and All-American First Team honors in 2024. In the community, she volunteered at the Children’s Hospital Omaha.
On the court, Wait helped lead the Creighton Bluejays to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament, as well as a BIG EAST regular season and tournament title. Individually, she was named AVCA First Team All-American, BIG EAST Player and Setter of the Year and BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player. Leading the BIG EAST in assists per set, she was one of 14 finalists for the AVCA National Player of the Year award.
Murphy completed his tenure at Villanova with a master’s in business administration, boasting a 3.830 graduate GPA. A recipient of the BIG EAST Scholar-Athlete Sport Excellence Award in Cross-Country in 2023-24.
One of the top distance runners in the country during a record-breaking collegiate career, Murphy set the NCAA record in the 1500 meters with a time of 3:33.02 at the Raleigh Relays on March 27, 2025. His collegiate body of work includes seven NCAA, collegiate and/or Villanova records. His nine career All-America honors and 12 career BIG EAST titles both tied Villanova men's records. His top national finishes are fourth place in the 3000 meters (2024 indoor, 2025 indoor), 11th in the 1500 meters (2023 outdoor, 2024 outdoor) and ninth in cross country (2024). In the final BIG EAST Championships meet of his career (2025 outdoor) he won the 1500 meters for the second straight year for his 12th BIG EAST title (six indoor, four outdoor, two cross country).
The Conference also announced the male and female winners of the 2024-25 BIG EAST Institutional Scholar-Athlete Scholarships. Each institutional winner receives $2,000 toward graduate studies.
2024-25 BIG EAST Institutional Female Scholar-Athlete Awards
| School |
Name, Sport(s) |
| Butler |
Talia Sommer, Soccer |
| Connecticut |
Olivia Wright, Tennis |
| Creighton |
Kendra Wait, Volleyball * |
DePaul
Georgetown
Marquette |
Rachel Krasowski, Volleyball
Chloe Scrimgeour, Cross Country
Hanna Bodner, Lacrosse |
| Providence |
Alexandra Millard, Cross Country |
| St. John’s |
Anastasia Serafinko, Softball |
| Seton Hall |
Olivia Gilbert, Softball |
| Villanova |
Roschell Clayton, Track & Field |
| Xavier |
Samantha Wiehe, Soccer |
*Women’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year
2024-25 BIG EAST Institutional Male Scholar-Athlete Awards
| School |
Name, Sport(s) |
| Butler |
William Zegarski, Track & Feld |
| Connecticut |
Diarmuid O’Connor, Track & Field |
| Creighton |
Dominic Cancellieri, Baseball |
| DePaul |
Darius Brown, Track & Field |
| Georgetown |
Abel Teffra, Track & Field |
Marquette
Providence |
Sam Cascella, Track & Field
Bernardo Prego, Soccer |
| St. John’s |
Braeden Pratt, Men’s Lacrosse |
| Seton Hall |
Sean Vizzard, Baseball |
| Villanova |
Liam Murphy, Track & Field * |
| Xavier |
Aiden Leamer, Swimming & Diving |
*Men’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year
BIG EAST Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year
Year, Name, School, Sport
1985: Leigh Curl, Connecticut, Basketball
1986: Joanne Keehs, Villanova, Track & Field
1987: Karen Ferreria, Providence, Volleyball
1988: Noreen Coughlin, Pittsburgh, Volleyball
1989: Vicki Huber, Villanova, Track & Field
1990: Siobhan Gallagher, Providence, Track & Field
1991: Cami White, Providence, Field Hockey
1992: Kelly Larkin, Syracuse, Field Hockey
1993: Nnenna Lynch, Villanova, Track & Field
1994: Allison Williams, Pittsburgh, Track & Field
1995: Becky Spies, Villanova, Cross Country/Track & Field
1996: Najuma Fletcher, Pittsburgh, Track & Field
1997: Jen Renola, Notre Dame, Soccer
1998: Charity Wachera, West Virginia, Track & Field
1999: Gladys Ganiel, Providence, Cross Country/Track & Field
2000: Jenny Streiffer, Notre Dame, Soccer
2001: Ruth Riley, Notre Dame, Basketball
2002: Jarrah Myers, Notre Dame, Softball
2003: Erin McIntyre, Rutgers, Swimming & Diving
2004: Vanessa Pruzinsky, Notre Dame, Soccer
2005: Nicole Lee, Georgetown, Cross Country/Track & Field
2006: Kelly Harrigan, Rutgers, Swimming & Diving
2007: Jessica Javelet, Louisville, Field Hockey
2008: Jillian Drouin, Syracuse, Track & Field
2009: Jennifer Kleinhans, Connecticut, Field Hockey
2010: Meagan Dooley, Pittsburgh, Volleyball
2011: Maya Moore, Connecticut, Basketball
2012: Natalie Kulla, Marquette, Soccer
2013: Sam Roecker, Providence, Cross Country/Track & Field
2014: Emily Sisson, Providence, Cross Country/Track & Field
2015: Shelbey Manthorpe, Seton Hall, Volleyball
2016: Rachel Daly, St. John’s, Soccer
2017: Lauren Smith, Creighton, Volleyball
2018: Alexis Walkden, Seton Hall, Softball
2019: Taryn Kloth, Creighton, Volleyball
2021: Aspasia Avgeri
, DePaul, Tennis
2022: Maggie Donahue, Georgetown, Cross Country
2023: Julia Leas, Georgetown, Soccer
2024: Julia Leas, Georgetown, Soccer
2025: Kendra Wait, Creighton, Volleyball
Note: In 2019-20, the BIG EAST did not present the Male or Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
BIG EAST Male Scholar-Athletes Of The Year
| Year |
Name, School, Sport |
| 1985 |
Joey David, Pittsburgh, Basketball |
| 1986 |
John Prior, Connecticut, Track & Field |
| 1987 |
Harold Jensen, Villanova, Basketball |
| 1988 |
Dave Echeverria, Villanova, Swimming & Diving |
| 1989 |
Chris Craft, Villanova, Swimming & Diving |
| 1990 |
Pat O’Kelly, Seton Hall, Soccer |
| 1991 |
David Honor, St. John’s, Baseball |
| 1992 |
Steve Holman, Georgetown, Track & Field |
| 1993 |
Hector Zamora, Seton Hall, Soccer |
| 1994 |
Sebastien Goulet, Swimming, Syracuse |
| 1995 |
Kevin Lyles, Seton Hall, Track & Field |
| 1996 |
Gil Kovalski, Miami, Tennis |
| 1997 |
Christian Fogarazzo, St. John’s, Track & Field |
| 1998 |
Errol Williams, Notre Dame, Track & Field |
| 1999 |
Angelo Ciminiello, Providence, Baseball |
| 2000 |
Scott VanEpps, Pittsburgh, Swimming & Diving |
| 2001 |
Chris Hamblin, Boston College, Soccer |
| 2002 |
Gregory Strohmann, Seton Hall, Soccer |
| 2003 |
Casey Schmidt, Boston College, Soccer |
| 2004 |
Chris Wingert, St. John’s, Soccer |
| 2005 |
Guy Melamed, Boston College, Soccer |
| 2006 |
Trevor O’Grady, Rutgers, Track & Field |
| 2007 |
Drew Eckman, Villanova, Track & Field |
| 2008 |
Jeremy Stultz, Pittsburgh, Swimming & Diving |
| 2009 |
Zak Boggs, USF, Soccer |
| 2010 |
Francisco Aristeguieta, USF, Soccer |
| 2011 |
Brian Karalunas, Villanova, Lacrosse |
| 2012 |
Eric Finan, Cincinnati, Cross Country/Track & Field |
| 2013 |
Grant Van De Casteele, Notre Dame, Soccer |
| 2014 |
Charles Lyon, Marquette, Soccer |
| 2015 |
Sam McEntee, Villanova, Cross Country/Track & Field |
| 2016 |
Thomas Hackimer, St. John’s, Baseball |
| 2017 |
David Goldsmith, Butler, Soccer |
| 2018 |
Eric Dick, Butler, Soccer |
| 2019 |
Sven Koenig, Creighton, Soccer |
| 2021 |
Marcelo Rocha, Providence, Track & Field |
| 2022 |
Dante Polvara, Georgetown, Soccer |
| 2023 |
Will Bowen, Georgetown, Lacrosse |
| 2024 |
Parker Stokes, Georgetown, Cross Country/Track & Field |
| 2025 |
Liam Murphy, Villanova, Track & Field |
Note: In 2019-20, the BIG EAST did not present the Male or Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.