IRVINE, Calif. - Elle Laur of the CSUN women's golf team was one of eight outstanding student-athletes across The Big West landscape who are 2023 recipients of The Big West's annual Service and Leadership Award.

Laur recently completed her third academic year at CSUN, majoring in broadcast journalism. She has been a standout in the classroom, earning Dean's List recognition every semester at CSUN. Laur is also the founder and president of The Hidden Opponent chapter at CSUN, serving as campus captain. With a presence in all 50 states and in some international locations, The Hidden Opponent is an accredited non-profit and advocacy group that raises awareness for student-athlete mental health and addresses the stigma within sports culture. 

On the golf course, she serves as team captain of the Matador women's golf team. Laur competed in nine of 10 tournaments for the Matadors during the 2022-23 season and carded a career-low round of 2-under-par 70 at the Colonel Ptarmigan Ram Classic last September and finished second on the team with a 78.58 scoring average. 

In her spare time, Laur also serves as youth council member for LA28. She joins former Matador student-athletes Taylor Thames (2021-22), Ashlee Sellung (2019-20), Erin Indermill (2018-19) as previous CSUN honorees.

Complete release courtesy of The Big West

Eight outstanding student-athletes across The Big West landscape have been named 2023 recipients of The Big West's annual Service and Leadership Award. 

UC Santa Barbara soccer player Evann Smith earned a third consecutive honor with seven newcomers to the award. With two dual-sport student-athletes, the 2023 recipients represent eight sports and the back-to-back classes of eight honorees ranks as the largest grouping in the award's five-year history. 

The award winners are:

• Madison Baxter, UC San Diego women's basketball
• Minami Creamer, Cal State Fullerton women's volleyball & women's water polo
• Garrisen Freeman, Cal State Bakersfield women's basketball
• Andre Ilagan, Hawai'i men's tennis
• Katie Kennedy, Long Beach State women's indoor and beach volleyball
• Elle Laur, CSUN women's golf
• Sophia Noble, UC Davis women's water polo
• Evann Smith, UC Santa Barbara women's soccer

 The Big West has celebrated student-athletes for the Service and Leadership Award annually, since the 2017-18 academic year. The award winners are selected at the discretion of each member-institution with criteria encompassing service, leadership and academics.

Each member-institution may submit one honoree per academic year who participates in a Big West sponsored sport and who engages consistently in service and leadership activities that impact the campus, community or regional levels. The awardee makes the most of opportunities presented to them by taking on key roles and is innovative in seeking out meaningful service and leadership opportunities, while keeping their academic eligibility on their respective team. 

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