Celebration of Women's Athletics Presented by adidas

Michelle Atherley

Michelle Atherley’s reign on the track continues to grow as the graduate student punched her ticket for the fifth time in her career to the NCAA Track and Field Championships. In her first heptathlon event of the season, Atherley not only broke her previous Miami record, but posted the third-best score in the NCAA and secured her spot at Nationals. She most recently helped the Miami 4×400 relay qualify for the outdoor championships and boasts countless top five marks and times in Miami history. She founded Miami’s Black Student-Athlete Alliance Organization and helped create the Black Male Student-Athlete Engagement & Empowerment program. She currently posts a 3.85 GPA while earning dual master’s in International Administration and Public Administration. Not only is she a three-time ACC Honor Roll member, but also the 2019 ACC Track and Field Scholar Athlete of the Year.

Estela Perez-Somarriba

Unquestionably one of the great players in the history of collegiate tennis, Perez-Somarriba reached the 2021 NCAA Singles Championship title match after claiming the trophy in 2019. She is one of two players ever with four Sweet 16s, three Final Fours, two finals berths and a national title, while her 17-3 record in the tournament is tied for the most wins ever. The Madrid native finished her illustrious career with a 165-26 singles mark, good for the most wins in school history and the second-most ever in the ACC. She went 94-9 in dual matches, including 82-7 at the top position and 53-7 in ACC play. A two-time ACC Player of the year, four-time First Team All-ACC honoree and five-time ITA All-American, Perez-Somarriba is a two-time Honda Sport Award finalist and won the award in 2019. She is a three-time All-ACC Academic Team member and the 2019 ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Perez-Somarriba graduated from Miami, summa cum laude, in May 2020 with a degree in economics and a 3.935 GPA. A three-time President’s List (4.0 GPA) honoree as an undergraduate student, Perez-Somarriba added a master’s degree in sport administration in May 2021, posting a perfect 4.0 GPA.

Debbie Ajagbe

Debbie Ajagbe continues her dominant career as a Miami thrower, reaching the NCAA East Preliminaries in three individual events. The junior ranks in Miami’s top five in all three events, while boasting the program record in the women’s discus. She broke her teammates’ record to finish second at the 2021 ACC Outdoor Championships. She holds the fourth-best mark in both the shot put and the hammer throw, marks all set this season. Ajagbe also holds Miami’s top mark in the weight throw. Ajagbe is a two-time ACC Indoor Field MVP, the 2020 ACC Indoor Track Scholar-Athlete of the Year and most recently received the ACC Postgraduate Scholarship. In the classroom, Ajagbe holds a 3.48 overall GPA, while majoring in mechanical engineering and is a three-time ACC Honor Roll member.

Mia Vallee

One of the top young divers in the country, Mia Vallée enjoyed a breakout season in her second year at The U in 2020-21. Mia, who is majoring in marine biology and ecology, earned a place on the Provost’s Honor Roll (3.75+ GPA) for the fall 2020 semester. The Canada native was also selected to the Dean’s List, and the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll, and is a three-time member of the Book Buster’s Club, as well as a two-time All-ACC Academic Team selection. In the pool, Mia put together one of the best seasons in recent history for a Miami diver. She won a gold medal in the 1-meter springboard and silver medal in the 3-meter springboard at the 2021 ACC Swimming & Diving Championships, and followed that up with the first NCAA All-America honors of her career, capturing a top-eight finish at the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships in Greensboro, N.C., in the 1-meter springboard. Vallée was also an Honorable Mention All-America in the 3-meter at NCAAs.

Sydney Knapp

Veteran standout Sydney Knapp finished her second year as a team captain, and her first as president of the University of Miami Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, in 2020-21.  Sydney, who arrived to Miami as a walk-on and has etched her name into the Miami history books in multiple events, currently holds times in the University of Miami all-time Top 10 in almost every freestyle distance; she is the sixth-fastest performer in school history in the 100-yard freestyle and the ninth-fastest performer in the 200-yard freestyle, as well as the 10^th-fastest performer in the 50-yard freestyle. Sydney, who is a member of the school record 200-yard freestyle relay team, is a U.S. Open qualifier.  Sydney is currently completing her Masters of Art in International Business and was tapped into the Omicron Delta Kappa honor society last year. She is a member of the Mortar Board Society, earned the ACC Postgraduate Scholarship in 2021 and is a three-time ACC Honor Roll selectee.

Kelsey Marshall

One of the most prolific three-pointer shooters in Miami women’s basketball history, senior Kelsey Marshall has left a mark during her four years as a Hurricane. The Davie, Fla., native has started 68 of 116 games played in a Miami uniform, earning a spot in the starting five over the last two seasons. Marshall has totaled 63 double-digit outings and eight 20-point games as a Cane and has led Miami in 3-pointers made in each of the last four years. The guard became the 29th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points in 2020-21 and currently ranks 24th all-time in scoring at Miami. Off the court, Marshall has been active in the community, making trips to The Lotus House and the Holtz Children’s Hospital. Marshall is a two-time member of the ACC All-Academic Team and a three-time ACC Honor Roll selection. She graduated from Miami in December 2020 with a degree in sports administration and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in finance in the Miami Herbert Business School.

Emma Langlois has been a consistent factor on Miami’s cross country and distance team. This past season she competed in all three races for the Canes and broke into Miami’s top 10 list in both the 5K and the 6K. She holds the eighth-best time in the 5K and the 6k, with the latter coming at the ACC Championships. With personal bests in both the cross country and track season, Langlois continues to improve and climb the rankings in Miami history. The senior boasts a 3.45 GPA in Exercise Physiology and has been named to the ACC Honor Roll three times in her career and has been named to Miami’s AD Honor Roll eight times.

Abby Schwenger

Kristyna Frydlova

Miami golfer Kristyna Frydlova continues to make an impact both on and off the course for the women’s golf team, with an outstanding 73.31 scoring average over her first four seasons, while participating in 90 career rounds. Considered one of the most consistent players on the golf team, Frydlova has 11 career top-20 finishes. Away from the course, the Prague native is equally as competitive, as she has made the Provost’s Honor Roll in all eight of her completed collegiate semesters. In the spring of 2020 she was tapped into the National Mortar Board Honor Society and the Omicron Delta Kappa National Honor Society before graduating in May of 2021 with a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and Nutrition. Frydlova has been an ACC All-Academic Team member each season and is also a three-time Women’s Golf Coaches Association All-American Scholar. Overall, she boasts a near perfect 3.907 cumulative GPA. Last summer, Frydlova was a Clinical Microbiology Laboratory Intern Assistant at Bulovka University Hospital in Prague, helping with COVID-19 testing and PCR processing.

Elizaveta Lukianova

Elizaveta Lukianova will go down as one of the most dominant offensive players in Miami volleyball history, earning her third-straight All-ACC honor after the unconventional 2021 season. The senior was tabbed with her first-ever First Team all-conference honor, adding to her two Second-Team awards. She was a three-time All-ACC Preseason Team member and finished the season with the highest attack percentage on the team at .273. She was one of two Canes to be named to the AVCA All-East Coast Region team, while tallying a team-high 45 blocks in 18 matches. Lukianova led the Canes with 303 kills and recorded double-digit kills in all but two matches. She’s a double major in Marketing and Management with minors in sports administration and finance. She boasts a 4.0 GPA and was one of four Canes to receive an ACC Postgraduate Scholarship. Lukianova was a three-time Provost Honor Roll recipient and was named to the All-ACC Academic Team twice and the ACC Honor Roll four times.

Tia Dupont

As a senior on the University of Miami soccer team, Tia Dupont has added new elements to her game each season as she continued to work into a leader both on and off the pitch. Pacing the Hurricanes with 13 points as a junior (four goals and five assists), Dupont capped the year earning All-ACC Academic Team honors. Overall, since arriving on campus for her freshman campaign in 2017, Dupont played in 56 matches, earned 36 starts and tallied five goals, seven assists and 17 points. Off the pitch, she has played a vital role on the executive board for Miami’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). In May of 2021 she earned a bachelor’s of science in marketing and management, while boasting a 3.51 GPA through the fall of 2020 and being a member on the ACC Honor Roll each season.