WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Swimmers Michaela Herwig and Evie Sierra – multi-year Academic All-Big Ten honorees that earned their degrees in May – have been selected as Purdue Athletics' recipients of the annual Big Ten postgraduate scholarships for the 2023-24 school year.
They will each receive a $7,500 scholarship for their continuing education. They plan to remain in the Big Ten for their postgraduate studies, with Sierra staying on as a graduate student at Purdue and Herwig returning to her home state to enroll in a graduate program at the University of Illinois.
Sierra graduated with a 3.80 grade-point average while earning her bachelor's in animal sciences, a field of study she'll continue with as a graduate student in the College of Agriculture at Purdue. The South Bend native competed primarily in the butterfly events for the Boilermakers. She was a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar as a sophomore and senior.
Herwig graduated with a 3.56 GPA while earning her bachelor's in speech, language and hearing sciences. The Geneva, Illinois, native plans to study Speech-Language Pathology in Urbana-Champaign. As a swimmer, she competed in the butterfly, backstroke and freestyle events, winning four medals as a freshman at the 2021 America East Conference Championship while competing for New Hampshire. She transferred to Purdue for the 2021-22 school year.
Both Boilermakers earned Academic All-Big Ten honors every year they were eligible to be recognized.
Since the Big Ten introduced the two postgraduate scholarships awarded to every institution at the end of the 2012-13 school year, swimmers have been frequently selected as the Boilermakers' recipients. Eleven of the 24 overall recipients have been swimmers and the aquatic center has produced at least one recipient in seven of the first 12 years. A pair of swimmers were selected for the fourth time.
Each Big Ten institution developed its own on-campus selection process when awarding the scholarships. Student-athletes must have maintained at least a 3.2 GPA, demonstrated leadership qualities, served as an excellent role model and intended to continue their academic work at a graduate degree program.
The scholarship will be used to pay expenses of the student's postgraduate education to include such related activities as research and teaching, as well as other expenses such as tuition, fees, room and board, required course-related supplies and books.
Around the Big Ten, 16 different sports were represented on this year's list of the league's postgraduate scholarship recipients. A conference-high five recipients were from swimming & diving programs.
BIG TEN POSTGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS
2024 – Michaela Herwig (Swimming), Evie Sierra (Swimming)
2023 – Blake Ratliff (Swimming), Emma Tate (Cross Country and Track & Field)
2022 – Jackson Smeltz (Baseball), Emma Terwilliger (Volleyball)
2021 – Léony Boudreau (Basketball), Gabi Gomez Treig (Swimming)
2020 – Susan Hubbard (Cross Country and Track & Field), Dylan Lydy (Wrestling)
2019 – Alex Clarke (Swimming), Ben Thornton (Wrestling)
2018 – Hanna House (Swimming), Chris Bals (Swimming)
2017 – Christa Szalach (Soccer), Jon McKeeman (Basketball)
2016 – Hayden Hamby (Basketball), Andrew Hoselton (Wrestling)
2015 – Carly Marshall (Swimming), Manuel Gutierrez (Swimming)
2014 – Cody Davis (Football), Kyle Mosier (Wrestling)
2013 – Lauren Gustafson (Swimming), Alec LaMothe (Swimming)
They will each receive a $7,500 scholarship for their continuing education. They plan to remain in the Big Ten for their postgraduate studies, with Sierra staying on as a graduate student at Purdue and Herwig returning to her home state to enroll in a graduate program at the University of Illinois.
Sierra graduated with a 3.80 grade-point average while earning her bachelor's in animal sciences, a field of study she'll continue with as a graduate student in the College of Agriculture at Purdue. The South Bend native competed primarily in the butterfly events for the Boilermakers. She was a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar as a sophomore and senior.
Herwig graduated with a 3.56 GPA while earning her bachelor's in speech, language and hearing sciences. The Geneva, Illinois, native plans to study Speech-Language Pathology in Urbana-Champaign. As a swimmer, she competed in the butterfly, backstroke and freestyle events, winning four medals as a freshman at the 2021 America East Conference Championship while competing for New Hampshire. She transferred to Purdue for the 2021-22 school year.
Both Boilermakers earned Academic All-Big Ten honors every year they were eligible to be recognized.
Since the Big Ten introduced the two postgraduate scholarships awarded to every institution at the end of the 2012-13 school year, swimmers have been frequently selected as the Boilermakers' recipients. Eleven of the 24 overall recipients have been swimmers and the aquatic center has produced at least one recipient in seven of the first 12 years. A pair of swimmers were selected for the fourth time.
Each Big Ten institution developed its own on-campus selection process when awarding the scholarships. Student-athletes must have maintained at least a 3.2 GPA, demonstrated leadership qualities, served as an excellent role model and intended to continue their academic work at a graduate degree program.
The scholarship will be used to pay expenses of the student's postgraduate education to include such related activities as research and teaching, as well as other expenses such as tuition, fees, room and board, required course-related supplies and books.
Around the Big Ten, 16 different sports were represented on this year's list of the league's postgraduate scholarship recipients. A conference-high five recipients were from swimming & diving programs.
BIG TEN POSTGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS
2024 – Michaela Herwig (Swimming), Evie Sierra (Swimming)
2023 – Blake Ratliff (Swimming), Emma Tate (Cross Country and Track & Field)
2022 – Jackson Smeltz (Baseball), Emma Terwilliger (Volleyball)
2021 – Léony Boudreau (Basketball), Gabi Gomez Treig (Swimming)
2020 – Susan Hubbard (Cross Country and Track & Field), Dylan Lydy (Wrestling)
2019 – Alex Clarke (Swimming), Ben Thornton (Wrestling)
2018 – Hanna House (Swimming), Chris Bals (Swimming)
2017 – Christa Szalach (Soccer), Jon McKeeman (Basketball)
2016 – Hayden Hamby (Basketball), Andrew Hoselton (Wrestling)
2015 – Carly Marshall (Swimming), Manuel Gutierrez (Swimming)
2014 – Cody Davis (Football), Kyle Mosier (Wrestling)
2013 – Lauren Gustafson (Swimming), Alec LaMothe (Swimming)