WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Conference diving champions Emily Bretscher and Brandon Loschiavo have been selected as Purdue Athletics' recipients of the Big Ten Medal of Honor for the 2020-21 school year, recognizing their dual proficiency in scholarship and athletics.
Bretscher and Loschiavo represent the Boilermakers in the 107th class of recipients of the Big Ten's most prestigious award. Established during the 1914-15 school year, the Big Ten Medal of Honor was the first award in the nation to demonstrate support for the educational emphasis placed on athletics. It is awarded to one male and one female student-athlete from the graduating class of each Big Ten institution. The 28 honorees from around the conference traditionally becomes an all-sports who's who list of the best and brightest in the league.
Loschiavo is an Olympian, NCAA champion, USA Diving national champion, All-American, four-time NCAA Championships qualifier, three-time Big Ten champion on the platform, and three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree. The Huntington Beach, California, native, graduated in May with a 3.39 grade-point average and bachelor's degree in communication.
Bretscher is a Big Diver of the Year, World University Games qualifier, All-American, multi-year NCAA Championships qualifier in all three diving events, Big Ten champion on 3-meter, Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar. The Knoxville, Tennessee, native, has compiled a 3.69 GPA as a general management major and plans to return to the Boilermakers' active roster for the 2021-22 school year to utilize her additional year of college eligibility.
Loschiavo is just the fifth Boilermaker to be an Olympian and Big Ten Medal of Honor winner. All five represented Team USA at the Olympic Games. That list includes…
Purdue swimming & diving has produced eight Big Ten Medal of Honor recipients dating back to Allie Smith being the department's female honoree in 2011. Divers MacKenzie Tweardy and Jamie Bissett were also honored together in 2015. Purdue Hall of Famers Carrie McCambridge (2006) and Casey Matthews (2014) are the other divers to be recognized.
Loschiavo won the Big Ten title on the tower in 2018, 2019 and 2021, becoming just the fourth men's diver in the league to accomplish the triple feat since the event was added to the conference championship meet in 1988. This year he went on to win on 10-meter at the NCAA Championships and U.S. Olympic Team Trials. He claimed Purdue's 13th NCAA title in diving and gave the Boilermakers a 10-meter representative on Team USA for the fourth consecutive Olympic Games. Loschiavo is only the third Purdue diver to qualify for the NCAA Championships four times. He also represented USA Diving at the last two FINA World Championships.
Bretscher's versatility has been her calling card. She has finished among the top 10 in all three diving events at the Big Ten Championships each of the last two seasons, winning three springboard medals – gold (2020) and two bronze (2020, 2021). She was a championship finalist on 3-meter and platform at NCAAs this season, helping the Purdue women rank as the top scorers in the diving events. As a junior, the three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree won the Purdue women's first Big Ten title since 2014. Bretscher ranks as the program's active career scoring leader at the Big Ten Championships, accounting for 255 team points. She also medaled at the USA Diving Winter Trials in December 2018.
BIG TEN MEDAL OF HONOR – PURDUE SWIMMING & DIVING (SINCE 2000)
• Lindsay Lange – 2003
• Louis Paul – 2005
• Carrie McCambridge – 2006
• Giordan Pogioli – 2006
• Allie Smith – 2011
• Casey Matthews – 2014
• Matt Friede – 2014
• MacKenzie Tweardy – 2015
• Jamie Bissett – 2015
• Marat Amaltdinov – 2018
• Taite Kitchel – 2019
• Emily Bretscher – 2021
• Brandon Loschiavo – 2021
Bretscher and Loschiavo represent the Boilermakers in the 107th class of recipients of the Big Ten's most prestigious award. Established during the 1914-15 school year, the Big Ten Medal of Honor was the first award in the nation to demonstrate support for the educational emphasis placed on athletics. It is awarded to one male and one female student-athlete from the graduating class of each Big Ten institution. The 28 honorees from around the conference traditionally becomes an all-sports who's who list of the best and brightest in the league.
Loschiavo is an Olympian, NCAA champion, USA Diving national champion, All-American, four-time NCAA Championships qualifier, three-time Big Ten champion on the platform, and three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree. The Huntington Beach, California, native, graduated in May with a 3.39 grade-point average and bachelor's degree in communication.
Bretscher is a Big Diver of the Year, World University Games qualifier, All-American, multi-year NCAA Championships qualifier in all three diving events, Big Ten champion on 3-meter, Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar. The Knoxville, Tennessee, native, has compiled a 3.69 GPA as a general management major and plans to return to the Boilermakers' active roster for the 2021-22 school year to utilize her additional year of college eligibility.
Loschiavo is just the fifth Boilermaker to be an Olympian and Big Ten Medal of Honor winner. All five represented Team USA at the Olympic Games. That list includes…
Boilermaker | Sport(s) at Purdue | Olympic Event(s) | Olympic Year(s) | Medal of Honor Year |
Cliff Furnas | Track & Field, Cross Country |
5,000 Meters | 1920 | 1922 |
Keith Carter | Swimming | 100 Free, 200 Breast |
1948 | 1949 |
Larry Burton | Track & Field, Football | 200 Meters, 4x100 Relay |
1972 | 1975 |
Kara Patterson | Track & Field | Javelin | 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020* | 2009 |
Brandon Loschiavo | Diving | 10-Meter | 2020* | 2021 |
*Contested in 2021 |
Purdue swimming & diving has produced eight Big Ten Medal of Honor recipients dating back to Allie Smith being the department's female honoree in 2011. Divers MacKenzie Tweardy and Jamie Bissett were also honored together in 2015. Purdue Hall of Famers Carrie McCambridge (2006) and Casey Matthews (2014) are the other divers to be recognized.
Loschiavo won the Big Ten title on the tower in 2018, 2019 and 2021, becoming just the fourth men's diver in the league to accomplish the triple feat since the event was added to the conference championship meet in 1988. This year he went on to win on 10-meter at the NCAA Championships and U.S. Olympic Team Trials. He claimed Purdue's 13th NCAA title in diving and gave the Boilermakers a 10-meter representative on Team USA for the fourth consecutive Olympic Games. Loschiavo is only the third Purdue diver to qualify for the NCAA Championships four times. He also represented USA Diving at the last two FINA World Championships.
Bretscher's versatility has been her calling card. She has finished among the top 10 in all three diving events at the Big Ten Championships each of the last two seasons, winning three springboard medals – gold (2020) and two bronze (2020, 2021). She was a championship finalist on 3-meter and platform at NCAAs this season, helping the Purdue women rank as the top scorers in the diving events. As a junior, the three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree won the Purdue women's first Big Ten title since 2014. Bretscher ranks as the program's active career scoring leader at the Big Ten Championships, accounting for 255 team points. She also medaled at the USA Diving Winter Trials in December 2018.
BIG TEN MEDAL OF HONOR – PURDUE SWIMMING & DIVING (SINCE 2000)
• Lindsay Lange – 2003
• Louis Paul – 2005
• Carrie McCambridge – 2006
• Giordan Pogioli – 2006
• Allie Smith – 2011
• Casey Matthews – 2014
• Matt Friede – 2014
• MacKenzie Tweardy – 2015
• Jamie Bissett – 2015
• Marat Amaltdinov – 2018
• Taite Kitchel – 2019
• Emily Bretscher – 2021
• Brandon Loschiavo – 2021