Former Thunderbird student-athletes Angie Nickerson and Skyler Porcaro have been named as Southern Utah’s Scholar-Athletes by the Big Sky Conference for excelling both in their field of competition and the classroom during the 2018-19 athletic year.
Nickerson concluded her time at Southern Utah in June, competing at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships. She was the first female athlete from Southern Utah to do so since the 2015 season. She earned Honorable Mention status on the All-American team with her performance in the 5,000-meter, finishing in 18th place with a time of 16:38.08.
That performance capped off an incredible season from the senior, who also led the women’s cross country team to a Big Sky Conference Championship, and claimed the Individual Championship on the course that day as well. She also earned three Gold Medals on the indoor and outdoor track circuit.
Porcaro wrapped up his career at Southern Utah making a trip to the NCAA National Championships as well, earning Second Team All-American status by finishing 16th in the country. Porcaro is the school record holder in the javelin with a throw of 234′ 10″ that was set at the most recent Big Sky Conference Championships. He was the top thrower in the field at 11 different meets over the course of his career and was All-Conference in the Big Sky twice.
Nickerson earned a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy degree and a Master of Public Administration degree in her five years as a student-athlete. Porcaro dual majored at Southern Utah earning a Bachelor’s Degree in both Biology and Spanish
To qualify for the award, a student-athlete must have a minimum grade-point-average of 3.2 (on a 4.0 scale), be a member of the graduating class and/or have completed their last year of intercollegiate athletic eligibility, have completed at least two years of intercollegiate competition and be a letterwinner in their respective sport.
Story and Photo Courtesy of: SUU Athletics
