INDIANAPOLIS — Former University of South Alabama track and field student-athlete Jan-Louw Kotze, who concluded his Jaguar throwing career earlier this year, has earned a NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.
Kotze was awarded one of the 29 NCAA postgraduate scholarships available this summer, earning $7,500 toward his postgraduate education.
The NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship was created in 1964 to promote and encourage graduate education by rewarding the Association's most accomplished student-athletes through their participation in NCAA championship and emerging sports. Each applicant is evaluated based on their athletics and academic achievements, campus involvement, community service, volunteer activities and demonstrated leadership.
"This scholarship was well deserved," head track and field coach Paul Brueske said. "He worked extremely hard throughout his collegiate career. It's great to see him reap the rewards from all of his hard work."
The Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa native earned his degree from South in May with a 4.00 cumulative grade-point average while majoring in both exercise science and psychology. He was also a member of the Sun Belt Conference Commissioner's List each of the last four years, while serving on USA's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee from 2015-17 and volunteering at numerous community service events in his time as a Jaguar.
During his final outdoor season in the spring of 2016, he was awarded the Elite 90 Award at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship. There Kotze went on to earn first-team All-American in the discus at the meet.
Kotze was a four-time winner of the event at the Sun Belt Championship during his Jaguar career, qualifying for the NCAA East Regional Preliminary Round each year, while also garnering honorable mention All-America recognition in 2015 as a junior. He concluded his outdoor collegiate career as USA's record holder in the discus and ranks second on the all-time performance list in the shot put and third in the hammer throw. Kotze also holds the Jaguars' all-time indoor weight throw record and is fifth in men's shot put.
Last week, Kotze was named to the Capital One Academic All-America® Men's Track & Field/Cross Country first team the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) for the second-consecutive year. That achievement made Kotze is the first South Alabama student-athlete to be named academic All-American from CoSIDA three times and the first athlete to earn the title in consecutive years since 1996-97.
Kotze was also one of two recipients of the Sun Belt Postgraduate Scholar Athlete-of-the-Year Award awarded in May. He earned a $6,500 scholarship toward his postgraduate education from this award as well.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Join the Jaguar Athletic Fund (JAF) Priority Fund, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to the Priority Fund directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/priorityfund
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