LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – UNLV cross country/track's Natalia Ruiz, football's Ricky White and men's golf's Caden Fioroni received the top honors among a group of student-athletes recognized at the Sixth Annual Scarlet & Gray Awards Show held Wednesday night at the Strip View Pavilion in the Thomas & Mack Center.

White and Fioroni were named the Mehdi Bouras Male Co-Scholar-Athletes of the Year, while Ruiz took home the Mehdi Bouras Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award. The awards are named in honor of the memory of the late UNLV tennis star Mehdi Bouras, who passed away suddenly in 2013 at the age of 24.

White, who is majoring in human services, reached new heights on the field and in the classroom in his record-setting season. The star wideout maintained a 3.5 GPA and ranked third nationally with his 1,489 receiving yards that shattered a 42-year-old, single-season program record. White also tied the UNLV record for receptions (88) in a season. For his academic excellence, he earned CSC Academic All-District and Academic All-Mountain West honors for the Fall 2023 semester. Along with his academic recognition, White parlayed his success on the gridiron into All-American honors (Action Network First Team; College Football Network Second Team; AP Third Team), All-Mountain West First Team accolades, CFN Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year and being named to the Biletnikoff Watch List.

Ruiz, who holds a 3.97 GPA as a psychology major minoring in neuroscience, chartered a path of excellence in her third year as a Rebel. She set school records in the outdoor distance events, taking over the top marks in the 5000m and the 10,000m. In the classroom, Ruiz collected USTFCCCA All-Academic Team and Academic All-MW recognition for the Fall 2023 term, as well as CSC Academic All-District honors for the Spring 2023 term. As a long distance runner, she placed fourth in the 10K at the 2023 Mountain West Outdoor Track & Field Championships and 14th at the 2023 MW Cross Country Championships, which made her the squad's first All-MW honoree in cross country since 2008.

Fioroni, who is majoring in sociology, put together a decorated year in the classroom and on the golf course. He upheld a 3.42 GPA and finished the 2022-23 season with a team-best 70.53 scoring average, which ranks fifth all-time for a single season in program history. For his academic work, Fioroni brought home GCAA All-America Scholar and Academic All-Mountain West awards. Additionally, he drew Mountain West Golfer of the Year, MW all-conference and PING All-West Region nods, as well as a selection as the top-seeded individual for the NCAA Las Vegas Regional.

Other honors, voted on by the student-athletes, included Outstanding Team (the back-to-back MW Champion Lady Rebels), Best Upset (volleyball defeats No.19 Kansas), Newcomers of the Year (Jasmine Lott from women's basketball and Hugo Lemos from men's soccer), the Perseverance Award (Colby Raffel from men's swimming and diving) and the Be a Rebel Award (Graham Keating from football).

Also announced during the show were the Student-Athlete Academic Champion awards, which are given to each sport's most well-rounded leaders that demonstrate great academic achievement in addition to maintaining a productive role in their respective sport. Athletic academic advisors select each sport's academic champion based on the following criteria: GPA, degree path, credit load, academic class standing, contribution to their sport, community service and character.
 
Additionally, 161 UNLV student-athletes were honored for earning academic all-conference honors by achieving GPAs of 3.0 or higher in the MW and the Western Athletic Conference (men's soccer and men's swimming & diving). On top of that, 99 Rebel student-athletes were recognized in 2022-23 on the Mountain West Scholar-Athlete Award list for recording a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or greater in at least two semesters at UNLV.
 
2023-24 UNLV SCARLET & GRAY AWARDS
Mehdi Bouras Scholar-Athletes of the Year: 
Natalia Ruiz (Cross Country/Track), Ricky White (Football) and Caden Fioroni (Men's Golf)

Athlete of the Year:
Desi-Rae Young (Women's Basketball) and Ricky White (Football)
 
Newcomers of the Year: 
Jasmyn Lott (Women's Basketball) and Hugo Lemos (Men's Soccer)

Best Upset Award: 
Men's soccer defeats top-seeded Seattle in WAC Tournament semifinal

Perseverance Award: 
Colby Raffel (Men's Swimming and Diving)

Outstanding Team Award: 
Women's Basketball

Be a Rebel Award: 
Graham Keating (Football)

Academic Career Breakthrough Awards: 
Taryn Encinas (Rebel Girls & Company) and Karl Jones (Men's Basketball)

Kenny Keys SAAS Choice Awards: 
Vika Yanovska (Women's Swimming & Diving) and Daego Albert (Football)

SAAC Leadership Award:
Livvy Setla (Volleyball)

UNLV TEAM ACADEMIC CHAMPIONS
Baseball: Rylan Charles
Men's Basketball: Isaiah Cottrell
Women's Basketball: Erica Collins
Football: Jackson Woodard
Men's Golf: Inigo Izuzquiza
Women's Golf: McKenzi Hall
Men's Soccer: Gabe Sanchez 
Women's Soccer: Torie Reardon
Softball: Alexys Herrera
Men's Swim and Dive: Steven Butler
Women's Swim and Dive: Calysta Bartlett
Men's Tennis: Aaron Bailey 
Women's Tennis: Zita Kovacs
Cross Country: Natalia Ruiz
Track and Field: Endya Scott
Volleyball: Gabrielle Arretche-Ramos 
Pom: Amiyah Harlan
Cheer: Malia Price
Rebel Girls and Company: Taryn Encinas