Twenty-Two UTEP Student-Athletes Set to Graduate on Saturday

12/13/2023 3:07:00 PM

EL PASO – Twenty-two past and present UTEP student-athletes will graduate from the University this Saturday (Dec. 16).

The list includes 11 representatives from the football program, six from track and field, four from soccer and one from softball.

Of the 22 graduates, 17 have earned placement on the Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average) during their careers. Six have been awarded CUSA Commissioner's Academic Medals (minimum 3.75 GPA).

Biographies follow on UTEP's December, 2023 graduating student-athletes.

December 2023 UTEP Graduating Student-Athletes

Niesha Burgher (Track & Field)                                              Saint Thomas, Jamaica
The 2023 CUSA Indoor Track and Field Performer of the Meet … took home the gold in the 200, and silver in the 60 and 4x400 relay at the CUSA Indoor Track & Field Championships … captured gold in the 100, and silver in the 200 and 4x100 at the CUSA Outdoor Championships … competed at the NCAA Preliminaries … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

Vanessa Cabello (Soccer)                                                       Pasadena, Texas
Appeared in 74 games with 49 starts after coming to UTEP in the fall of 2019 … played nearly 5,000 minutes for the Miners … started all but one game in her last three seasons … posted seven shots (four on goal) as a senior … tallied five assists in her career … served up a career-high two assists against Middle Tennessee in 2022 … recipient of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Medal (2020, 2022) … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023) … Rehabilitation Science major.

Angie Calderon (Track & Field)                                              El Paso, Texas
Competes on the UTEP cross country and track and field teams … clocked in with a personal-best in the indoor 1000 at the Texas Corky Classic … recorded a PR in the indoor 3000 at the MLK Collegiate Invite … set a personal best in the outdoor 800 at the Don Kirby Tailwind Open … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2023) … Accounting major.

Karon Dean (Track & Field)                                                    Nassau, Bahamas
Recorded a first-place finish in first-ever event at UTEP in the indoor 60 at the MLK Collegiate Invitational … had a second-place showing in the 100 at the Bryan Clay Invitational … clocked in with a PR of 6.65 in the indoor 60 at the Texas Tech Corky Classic … named to 2023 USTFCCCA All-Academic Team … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2022, 2023) … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

Lucas Flores (Football)                                                           El Paso, Texas
Joined the program in the fall of 2020, making his biggest contributions on the practice field … appeared in one game in 2023 … recipient of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Medal (2021, 2022, 2023) … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2021, 2022, 2023) … Accounting major.

Zach Fryar (Football)                                                              Venice, Fla.
Played in 41 games, including 15 starts, after joining UTEP in 2020 … had a breakout season in 2023, compiling 10 catches for 59 yards and a touchdown … registered two catches in three different games, including a career-high 25 yards at Jax State … also hauled in two passes at Northwestern, including a TD … recipient of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Medal (2021) … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2021) … Kinesiology major.

Dante Granados (Football)                                                    El Paso, Texas
Competed with the Miners since 2020, helping the team primarily on the practice field … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2023) … Kinesiology major.

Deion Hankins (Football)                                                       El Paso, Texas
Earned All-Conference USA honors in both 2022 and 2023, while securing a spot on the CUSA All-Freshman team in 2020 … appeared in 45 games, making 17 starts … rushed 548 times for 2,604 yards (seventh all-time at UTEP) to go with 23 rushing touchdowns (tied for sixth at UTEP)  … posted eight career games with 100+ yards rushing (tied for 10th at UTEP) … led the Miners in both rushing yards (812) and scores (five) in 2023 … posted back-to-back 100-yard games (vs. NM State, at Sam Houston), the first Miner to do so since 2016 …  piled up 702 yards and two rushing TDs in 2022 … burst onto the scene with 592 yards and nine touchdowns in only seven games played in 2020 … helped the program reach a bowl game in 2021 … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

Hunter Harkrider (Softball)                                                         Odessa, Texas
Played in four games, including three starts, before sustaining an injury in 2022 … collected two hits, including a double, while scoring a pair of runs … recipient of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Medal (2022) … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2022) … Marketing major.

Kevin Hewitt (Track & Field)                                                  Queens, N.Y.
Won gold in the 4x400 at the 2021 CUSA Outdoor Championships … competed at the 2021 NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon … ran a personal-best 1:28.03 in the 600 at the New Mexico  Classic … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2021, 2022, 2023) … Political Science major.

Joshua Hill (Track & Field)                                                      Houston, Texas
Won gold in the 4x400 at the 2021 CUSA Outdoor Track and Field Championships … competed at the 2021 NCAA Championships … took silver in the 400 at the 2023 CUSA Outdoor Championships … ran a PR of 46.66 in the 400 at the Desert Heat Classic … recipient of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Medal (2021) … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2021, 2022, 2023) … Kinesiology major.

Kobe Hylton (Football)                                                           Snellville, Ga.
Garnered honorable mention All-Conference USA status in both of his years as a Miner while starting in all 22 of his appearances and leading the secondary … racked up 146 career tackles, including 82 solo stops, to go along with seven pass breakups, four forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, a blocked kick and half a sack … paced the Miners in solo tackles (54) while rating third in total tackles (91) in 2022 … was also third on the team in tackles (54) in 2023 … posted 10 tackles in three different games (at New Mexico, at LA Tech and at Rice) in 2022 … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

Joan Kimaiyo (Track & Field)                                                 Iten, Kenya
Competed on the UTEP cross country and track and field squads … posted a second-place finish in the 3,000 at the Don Kirby Tailwind Open … set a trio of personal bests in the mile, 3,000 and 10,000 during the 2022 indoor/outdoor season … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2021, 2022, 2023) … Industrial and Systems Engineering major.

Taya Lopez (Soccer)                                                               Las Cruces, N.M.
Appeared in 48 games with 27 starts over three seasons with the Miners … started all 17 contests during the 2023 season … racked up over 2,400 minutes … scored four goals and tallied four assists … recorded 22 shots (13 on goal) … posted a career-high three shots against Jax State in 2023 … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2022, 2023) … Kinesiology major.

Sedrick Luke (Football)                                                          North Highlands, Calif.
Offensive lineman who made two appearances for the Miners during the 2022 season … also contributed on the practice field … recipient of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Medal (2023) … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2023) … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

Lilly Marquez (Soccer)                                                            Dallas, Texas
Appeared in 33 games with 10 starts before being sidelined due to injury … played almost 1,400 minutes for the Miners … scored one goal and tallied two assists ... posted five shots (three on goal) … following her injury, she continued to support the program, transitioning to team manager … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023) … Ecology and Evolutionary Biology major.

Justin Mayers (Football)                                                        Frisco, Texas
Earned honorable mention All-Conference USA in both 2022 and 2023 as a key member of the offensive line … made 24 career starts in 35 appearances … helped the Miner ground game produce more than 144 yards rushing per game and 16 rushing touchdowns in 2023 … through his efforts, a pair of running backs rated in the top seven on the CUSA rushing list during the regular season … in 2022, Mayers helped UTEP rush for 167 yards per game and 14 touchdowns … was a part of the program since 2019, helping the Miners reach a bowl game in 2021 … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023) … Kinesiology major.

Otis Pitts III (Football)                                                            Grand Prairie, Texas
Offensive lineman who appeared in 19 contests, including two starts, since joining the team in 2021 … UTEP rushed for over 144 yards per game and scored 16 touchdowns on the ground in 2023 … two running backs cracked the top seven on the CUSA rushing list during the regular season … played in seven games in 2022 when UTEP averaged 167 yards per game and scored 14 rushing TDs … Member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2022) … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

Mark Ramos (Football)                                                          El Paso, Texas
Onside kick specialist and primary holder for the Miners who joined the program in 2019 … executed a successful onside kick at Florida Atlantic in 2021 … appeared in 35 games for UTEP and was a member of the 2021 bowl team … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2020, 2021) … History major.

Tyrin Smith (Football)                                                            Cibolo, Texas
Became only the eighth Miner to post a 1,000-yard receiving season … tallied 1,039 yards on 71 receptions and seven touchdowns in 2022 … finished with 1,800 career receiving yards on 123 catches with 12 touchdowns … honorable mention All-CUSA in 2022 … amassed a career-high 183 receiving yards at New Mexico in 2022 … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

Bryton Thompson (Football)                                                 Harker Heights, Texas
Saw action in 15 games over the last two seasons … posted 3.5 sacks in 2022 and another sack in 2023 … added 14 tackles with four tackles for loss and a forced fumble in 2022 … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

Justice Tillotson (Soccer)                                                        Rochester, Mich.
Played in 34 games with 17 starts after transferring from Michigan State … was on the field for nearly 1,800 minutes … scored one goal and notched one assist for the Miners … posted six shots (three on goal) … member of Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2023) … Multidisciplinary Studies major.

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