TEMPE, Ariz. – Women's Swimming & Diving senior Silja Kansakoski and football senior wide receiver Kyle Williams are this year's recipients of the Bill Kajikawa Award, as announced by the department on Monday.
The award is annually presented to one male and one female graduating senior student-athlete in recognition for his and her contributions at Arizona State University in honor of legendary Sun Devil Bill Kajikawa. Sun Devil Athletics selects the Kajikawa Award recipients based on demonstrated academic excellence, athletic accomplishment, leadership and service in the community.
Kansakoski is a six-time career All-American including taking honorable mention honors in the 100 and 200 breaststroke in her very first season in Tempe. Also excelling in the classroom, the Chemistry major was a CSCAA Academic All-American and earned multiple nods to the Pac-12 All-Academic team as well.
The male Kajikawa Award recipient is Kyle Williams of Sun Devil Football. Williams is known for his hard work on the field and in the classroom. He enjoyed a productive career as a Sun Devil, catching a pass in 41 consecutive games which was tied for the third-longest streak in ASU history. He finished with the sixth-longest streak of games with a reception in the Pac-12 since 1996. Williams' 161 catches in his career puts him in seventh place on the ASU career receptions list. In each of his last three seasons, he reached the 40-catch mark.
Williams' contributions don't stop on the field, as he has been utilizing his time at Arizona State to prepare for a career in the medical profession as an alternative to professional football. The Biomedical Engineering major is part of the prestigious Barrett, the Honors College, where he competed equally as hard with his classmates as he did with his teammates. He drew the attention and admiration of those locally and nationally when it was revealed in early 2018 he was interning at the Mayo Clinic the guidance of Dr. Anikar Chhabra, the Team Orthopedic Surgeon for Arizona State University. Thanks to his efforts, Williams was named a Semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy prior to his senior season, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership. He was a 2018 Academic Pac-12 All-Conference Second Team selection and 2019 Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll choice.
Sun Devil Athletics looks forward to being part of what helps bring our community back together in the safest way possible. Like all of us, we very much hope that time is sooner rather than later. Given the uncertain economic climate, we want to make every effort to ensure our fans are provided with as much flexibility as possible when purchasing season tickets. Our sales and service team is here for you and we invite you to contact us by phone, email or chat. Current season ticket holders can reach their personal service representative at 480-965-5333 and fans interested in season tickets can call 480-965-5812.
We are available by email at sundeviltickets@asu.edu or via our live chat feature. Contact us to discuss the options listed below or any other questions or concerns with which we can assist. More info can be found here.
The award is annually presented to one male and one female graduating senior student-athlete in recognition for his and her contributions at Arizona State University in honor of legendary Sun Devil Bill Kajikawa. Sun Devil Athletics selects the Kajikawa Award recipients based on demonstrated academic excellence, athletic accomplishment, leadership and service in the community.
The female Kajikawa Award winner, Silja Kansakoski, made an impact both in the pool and in the classroom. Kansakoski is a two-time Pac-12 Champion, first earning the nod during her freshman season while reclaiming her crown in the 100 breaststroke during her junior year. The Fin excelled while completely rewriting the record books at Arizona State, now claiming nine of the top-10 fastest times in Sun Devil history in the 100 breast and eight of the top-10 times in the 200 breast with the completion of her eligibility.This past weekend, ASU honored a legend at the Kajikawa Classic. Check out the story of the events namesake, Bill Kajikawa ?? pic.twitter.com/q6lZ3VyfYS
— Sun Devil Softball (@ASUSoftball) February 14, 2018
?? PAC-12 CHAMPION ??@ASUSwimDive's Silja Kansakoski wins her 2??nd #Pac12Swim title in 3?? years in the 100 breast! pic.twitter.com/sywhivxjLg
— Arizona State Sun Devils (@TheSunDevils) March 2, 2019
Kansakoski is a six-time career All-American including taking honorable mention honors in the 100 and 200 breaststroke in her very first season in Tempe. Also excelling in the classroom, the Chemistry major was a CSCAA Academic All-American and earned multiple nods to the Pac-12 All-Academic team as well.
Finally, Silja Kansakoski has rewritten our record books in the breaststroke events. She's broken 1:00 in the 100 breast on 18 separate occasions while representing the Sun Devils! pic.twitter.com/v9nULMiwgt
— Herbie Behm (@SirHerb_the3rd) March 25, 2020
The male Kajikawa Award recipient is Kyle Williams of Sun Devil Football. Williams is known for his hard work on the field and in the classroom. He enjoyed a productive career as a Sun Devil, catching a pass in 41 consecutive games which was tied for the third-longest streak in ASU history. He finished with the sixth-longest streak of games with a reception in the Pac-12 since 1996. Williams' 161 catches in his career puts him in seventh place on the ASU career receptions list. In each of his last three seasons, he reached the 40-catch mark.
New Year, Same Goals...
— Kyle Williams (@kylewilliamsVI) January 2, 2020
Forks Up Forever! ???? pic.twitter.com/d6iPUWncmu
Williams' contributions don't stop on the field, as he has been utilizing his time at Arizona State to prepare for a career in the medical profession as an alternative to professional football. The Biomedical Engineering major is part of the prestigious Barrett, the Honors College, where he competed equally as hard with his classmates as he did with his teammates. He drew the attention and admiration of those locally and nationally when it was revealed in early 2018 he was interning at the Mayo Clinic the guidance of Dr. Anikar Chhabra, the Team Orthopedic Surgeon for Arizona State University. Thanks to his efforts, Williams was named a Semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy prior to his senior season, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership. He was a 2018 Academic Pac-12 All-Conference Second Team selection and 2019 Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll choice.
My story for Sunday paper on ASU side receiver Kyle Williams and career aspirations to become a doctor:@ASUFootball @ChhabraAnikar @kylewilliamsVI @pac12 https://t.co/qq2LMQKRvJ
— Michelle Gardner (@MGardnerSports) May 12, 2019
Sun Devil Athletics looks forward to being part of what helps bring our community back together in the safest way possible. Like all of us, we very much hope that time is sooner rather than later. Given the uncertain economic climate, we want to make every effort to ensure our fans are provided with as much flexibility as possible when purchasing season tickets. Our sales and service team is here for you and we invite you to contact us by phone, email or chat. Current season ticket holders can reach their personal service representative at 480-965-5333 and fans interested in season tickets can call 480-965-5812.
Congrats to @kylewilliamsVI on a well deserved honor!https://t.co/cOpA9wvoCo
— Sun Devil Football (@ASUFootball) March 2, 2020
We are available by email at sundeviltickets@asu.edu or via our live chat feature. Contact us to discuss the options listed below or any other questions or concerns with which we can assist. More info can be found here.
Congratulations to Eno Benjamin and Kyle Williams on being named to the 2020 National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society! https://t.co/QxxGdW1kBq
— Sun Devil Football (@ASUFootball) April 16, 2020