Gabe Levin won the Elite 90 Award, given to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s 90 championships. Photo: DU Athletics
DU hockey player Gabe Levin, who grew up in Marina del Rey, Calif., helped the Pioneers advance to the Frozen Four this year for the first time since 2005. At the tournament’s award ceremony, Levin won the Elite 90 Award, given to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s 90 championships.
Levin, who also was named the 2016 NCHC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, has registered a 3.961 GPA during his senior season as a finance major. Levin also is the recipient of the conference’s inaugural post-graduate scholarship; he plans to enter Harvard Law in the fall after graduating from DU’s Daniels College of Business in June.
“Gabe is the embodiment of what a student-athlete should be,” says head hockey coach Jim Montgomery. “He excels at everything he does, and it’s been a privilege to coach him these last three years. He’s a great ambassador not just for Denver hockey, but for college hockey as a whole.”
In addition to his NCHC academic honors, Levin is the recipient of DU’s Chancellor Scholarship, the highest merit-based academic award offered by DU. He also is a three-time Denver Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year for having the top GPA in his class among male student-athletes. He was named to the Capital One Academic All-District Team in 2013–14, and he has earned the Most Sportsmanlike Award and the Most Improved Player Award from his teammates during his Denver career.
Q: Why did you choose to come to DU?
A: I was recruited to play hockey at DU, and being able to play for the Pioneers was a dream come true. The history and tradition of the program made it an easy decision.
Q: Why did you major in finance? Do you plan to work in your field after graduation?
A: I am a finance major, but I ultimately became more interested in my legal studies minor. I chose this minor because I really enjoyed the subject matter and debates that were created in these courses. I will be attending law school, so I plan to work in the law field after finishing my education.
Q: Did you have an internship or do any volunteer work during your time on campus? If so, how did those experiences help prepare you for life after college?
A: I volunteered as a member of the hockey team, and I was also a representative/executive of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee. Coordinating these initiatives helped to teach me leadership and organizational skills that will help me in the future.
Q: Is there a class and/or faculty member who stands out as particularly influential? Why?
A: There are a lot of faculty members who have had positive influences on me in my time at DU. The first one who comes to mind is business professor Philip Beaver. I took a class with him my first quarter and ended up taking two more courses with him over the next two years. He was the first professor to take an interest in me personally and always challenged me to do better in his class.
Q: What is the biggest lesson you are taking away from your time at DU?
A: The biggest lesson I am taking away from my time at DU is that situations may not always live up to your expectations, and in these situations, it us up to you to make the most of the resources that are at your disposal.
DU’s spring undergraduate Commencement ceremony is at 9:30 a.m. June 4; visit the Commencement page for more information.