On May 15, seniors Auburn Tomkinson and Camden Keller accepted the Scholar Athlete of the Year Award. This award is given to recognize students for their athletic performance along with academic excellence. Both athletes achieved the highest GPAs while participating in sports. 

Tomkinson is a competitive volleyball player for both high school and club. Throughout the years, she learned the best way to balance school and athletics.

“Knowing what my priorities are and focusing on what I need to do helped me maintain a balance,” Tomkinson said.

Receiving the Scholar Athlete Award was a memorable experience for Tomkinson’s senior year. This award has motivated her to continue to strive for excellence. 

“For me, this award shows that some of my hard work has paid off and there is still so much else to accomplish,” Tomkinson said.

Tomkinson is committed to play Division 1 Volleyball at the University of Texas. She has many goals for the future in academics and athletics. Most of all, she is looking forward to pursuing her passion for volleyball among talented players. 

“My goals for the future are to win a national championship, graduate college and play pro volleyball,” Tomkinson said. “I am looking forward to the crazy high level of volleyball and being surrounded by the most amazing people and players.”

Keller is a dual-athlete who plays both lacrosse and football at Carlsbad. Time management was the most helpful for Keller in maintaining his GPA with a busy extracurricular schedule. 

“The most helpful thing in balancing sports and school was managing my time efficiently and always using my time wisely to attend all the practices and doing school work in between,” Keller said. 

Moving forward, Keller has plans to attend the University of California, Los Angeles. Although he is undecided if he will continue his sport, he is looking forward to this next chapter in his academic career.

“My goals for the future are to attend and graduate from UCLA and get a good job,” Keller said. “I’m undecided if I will continue playing lacrosse in college.”

Earning the title of Scholar Athlete took an immense amount of effort and dedication. This award showcases both athletes’ dedication to their sports and their academic performance. 

“This award is a great honor to be recognized as my school’s Scholar Athlete and to be recognized with all the other great scholar athletes in San Diego,” Keller said.