FARMINGTON, Utah (July 16, 2024) – Celebrating the careers of 22 student-athletes from its full-time members and football affiliates, the Big Sky Conference office has announced the newest 2023-24 Scholar Athlete class.
Prabhasha Wickramaarachchi and
T.J. Patterson represent Idaho on this prestigious list.
Wickramaarachchi competed for the Vandals on the track and field team for four seasons. She excelled on the track and in the classroom, boasting a 3.97 cumulative GPA in medical sciences. Wickramaarachchi is also a champion in community engagement, serving in Moscow and her home communities at any given chance. She has volunteered as a one-on-one patient sitter at Gritman Hospital, tutored fellow Vandals in general chemistry and biochemistry, served as an anatomy teaching assistant, and participated in supporting The Hidden Oppenent's student-athlete mental health awareness initiatives. During her summers back home in Langley, British Colombia, she coached local youth track teams, ran a Canadian Blood Service stem cell drive, and served as the emcee for the National People's Power Party Public Meeting in Vancouver for the Sri Lankan presidential candidate, Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
Patterson was a member of the men's golf team for five seasons. He earned two degrees at Idaho, most recently a M.S. in engineering and technology management with a 3.6 cumulative GPA. Patterson was an active advocate for Vandal Athletics, serving as the president of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and a member of the Big Sky SAAC Executive Communications Committee. He worked alongside Tom Wistrcill, the Big Sky President, to coordinate and plan events and ideas to get all the Big Sky schools involved in the community. Patterson served as the liaison between the conference and Idaho SAAC. The former team captain can be described by head coach Nuhn as "the first to arrive, and the last to leave."
To be eligible for this award, the student-athlete must have exhausted his or her intercollegiate athletic eligibility and/or be a member of the graduating class, earned a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.2 (on a 4.0) scale, been a participant in a Big Sky-sponsored sport, completed at least two (2) years of intercollegiate competition at the institution, and been a letter winner.
"Honoring our Scholar Athletes is special every year because this group truly exemplifies what it means to compete on the collegiate level," Commissioner Tom Wistrcill said. "Seeing the fields these student-athletes have received degrees in fills me with a sense of pride and knowing that some of them will get to continue their athletic careers at the highest level of their discipline proves that you can get to where you want to go from the Big Sky Conference no matter what your goals and aspirations are. Congratulations to our 22 Scholar Athletes and thank you for your commitment to the Big Sky Conference."
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