TUCSON, Ariz. -- Arizona senior shortstop Jessie Harper has been named the Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete, the conference announced on Wednesday.

The Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete is the highest academic distinction issued to each sport, honoring players for their work in the classroom and on the field, two areas that Harper has excelled at in her five years in Tucson. Harper is Arizona's second-ever recipient of the award, joining Kelsey Rodriguez in 2014. 

Harper, who graduated with a degree in sociology in 2020 with a 3.74 undergraduate GPA and was a CoSIDA Academic All-American, is now working on her master's in educational leadership from the University of Arizona and has a perfect 4.0 GPA in graduate school. Harper has been honored as CoSIDA Academic all-district each of the last two years and has been honored by the Pac-12 for academic excellence every year she has been eligible.

On the field, Harper is one of the best players in NCAA history. An All-American at two different positions in her career, Harper currently ranks fourth in NCAA history with 89 career home runs. Among active players in the NCAA, her 89 career home runs rank first while her 246 career RBI rank second. Earlier this week, Harper was named first-team All-Pac-12, earning her fourth straight first-team all-conference nod. Harper led the NCAA in home runs in 2019 (29) and has finished first or second in the league in homers in each of her previous four seasons. This year, Harper is hitting .320 with 13 homers and 40 RBI.

Harper's award makes three major postseason conference awards for the Wildcats. Janelle Meoño was named both the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year as well as the Pac-12 Batting Champion. Arizona's full list of Pac-12 awards can be found HERE.

Harper and the Wildcats are preparing for the NCAA Tournament, which begins on Friday vs. UMBC at 5:30 p.m. to kick off Arizona's participation in the Tucson Regional. A full schedule of the Tucson Regional can be found HERE.

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