Davin Lundquist, John Pike, Will Allan

Oxy Grads Cash in on Education

Wouldn't it be great to get paid for doing your homework? Although that may be a pipe dream for most of us, three recent graduates of Occidental College are, in a sense, being rewarded for doing just that.

Proving that Oxy athletes can excel in the uncompromising academic environment of a liberal arts institution, former sports stars Davin Lundquist '95, John Pike '96 and Will Allan '96 are now enjoying the fruits of their undergraduate labors thanks to some handsome postgraduate scholarships.

Lundquist, who started at quarterback in 1993 and 1994, was one of only 15 players in the nation to win the prestigious National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame Scholar Athlete Award. The scholarship was worth $21,000 and was applied to his first year's tuition at medical school. In addition, Lundquist was also naned as a recipient of a $5,000 postgraduate scholarship from the NCAA... one of only 29 football players in the nation to earn this award. Davin, who led Oxy to a two-year record of 14-4, majored in Kinesiology (Spanish minor) while carrying a cumulative grade point average of 3.76. In 1993, Lundquist was honored as All-SCIAC first-team quarterback and punter and was selected to the GTE Academic All-America West Region Team.

Pike was a four-year starter on the men's basketball team, finishing as the school's fourth best all-time career scorer with 1,278 points. John, who was a first-team All-SCIAC selection in his junior year, earned a $5,000 NCAA postgraduate scholarship at the end of his senior season. A Rhodes Scholar nominee, Pike is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society, having built an overall GPA of 3.89. An economics major, Pike helped Oxy to four consecutive winning seasons and was last year nominated to the GTE Academic All-America National and West Region Team. Pike was also a member of the 1996 Occidental Golf Team.

Not only an outstanding student, Will Allan was the epitome of excellence in both cross country and track. A consensus, four-year All-SCIAC fixture in cross country, Allan also won a $5,000 NCAA postgraduate scholarship. Will was twice named SCIAC "Runner of the Year" and earned All-America honors in both sports. This past spring Will recorded one of the fastest collegiate clockings in the nation for the 800 meters, blazing Bill Henry Track in a time of 1:49.73. He went on to place eighth at the NCAA Championships this past May, again earning All-America accolades. Academically, Allan majored in Kinesiology and fashioned a 3.30 GPA. Like Pike, he was named to the GTE Academic All-America National and West Region Teams.