Walker Selected as Candidate for Senior Class Award

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State standout Joel Walker has been tabbed as a Candidate for the Senior CLASS Award.
 
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character, and competition.
 
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
 
The list of 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists in April, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2021 NCAA Men's and Women's College Cup® championships in May.
 
Walker has proven to be a force for Oregon State on the field, in the classroom and in the community. The forward has started all nine matches for the Beavers this season. He has recorded nine goals and eight assists over the course of his career. Walker was an All-Pac-12 selection last season, and was selected as one of Top Drawer Soccer's Top-100 Players in the Nation earlier this year.
 
The senior is a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree. Walker has also been selected to the Pac-12 All-Academic First Team, and made the Pac-12 Honor Roll. Over the summer of 2020, he served as a Global Retail Concepts Intern for Nike.
 
Walker worked with Maddy Ellsworth, a fellow Oregon State student-athlete, to launch Dam Change, a campaign designed to bring awareness regarding the issues of systemic racism in today's society. Its goal is to educate, empower, and enhance the experience of Black student-athletes and staff. The senior has also been an active member of the Dam Worth It campaign, which focuses on mental health. In January of 2020, Walker attended the Black Student-Athlete Summit.
 
As a team, Oregon State is 7-2 on the season and is ranked No. 3 in the United Soccer Coaches rankings. The Beavers will be back in action Sunday at California.
 
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