Brooks, Buca Named Michigan’s Big Ten Medal of Honor Recipients
4/17/2023 8:15:00 PM | General, Men's Soccer, Women's Gymnastics
• Michigan Medal of Honor Recipients
• Watch: Get to Know Sierra Brooks
• Watch: Get to Know Kevin Buca
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan Athletic Department announced Monday (April 17) that senior Sierra Brooks (women's gymnastics) and graduate student Kevin Buca (men's soccer) were named its 2023 Big Ten Medal of honor recipients.
The Big Ten Medal of Honor is awarded to one male and one female student from the graduating class of each member institution who has demonstrated excellence on and off the field throughout their college career. The highest honor that a student competing in conference athletics can achieve in the Big Ten, the award was established in 1915 and was the first award in intercollegiate athletics to demonstrate support for the educational emphasis placed on athletics. During the past century, the Big Ten Medal of Honor has been awarded to more than 1,500 honorees. These individuals have translated their campus experience into success in all walks of life.
Brooks is the department's female recipient, the seventh from the women's gymnastics program and the first since Nicole Artz in 2017. Other gymnastics recipients include: Heidi Cohen (1987), Beth Wymer (1995), Beth Amelkovich (1999), Janessa Grieco (2003), Sarah Curtis (2011) and Katie Zurales (2013).
The Plainfield, Ill. native has cemented herself as one of the greatest Michigan gymnasts of all time after a standout senior career in which she was named the 2023 AAI Award winner, is a seven-time WCGA First Team All-America honoree, became the first U-M gymnast to be named a three-time Regional Gymnast of the Year and is just the third Michigan gymnast to be named a two-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Year.
She was the 13th Wolverine in program history to earn first team all-conference honors on four occasions, joining Natalie Wojcik as the last U-M gymnast to do so. Brooks earned 16 event titles in 2023, including four all-around titles this season. The senior all-arounder was a 2023 regional champion with a perfect 10.0 on floor, earned a perfect 10.0 on vault at Rutgers, scored a career-high 9.975 on uneven bars against No. 1 Oklahoma, won a share of the Big Ten uneven bars title and was a three-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Week honoree.
Brooks ranked in the top 20 nationally in all four individual events and eighth nationally in the all-around. She finished the season fifth nationally on the vault, 14th on the uneven bars, 19th on the beam and 18th on the floor. Furthermore, Brooks led the North East region in the all-around, vault and floor, while ranking second on beam and third on uneven bars.
Outside of the gym, Brooks is the president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and is an outstanding student-athlete as a business administration major in the Ross School of Business with a minor in entrepreneurship. She is a three-time WCGA Academic All-American honoree, a COSIDA Academic All-District honoree, a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree. She has also received the Leaders and Best Award and the Bates Deskins Award for most outstanding student-athlete in her class as a sophomore and junior.
Brooks was named a James B. Scholar in March of 2021 and was a leadership development ambassador, representing women's gymnastics. Among all of her activities, she also is a student mentor for incoming freshmen and is a Brown Girls Do Representative.
Buca is the department's male recipient, just the second in men's soccer history, joining Robbie Mertz, who earned the honor in 2019.
The Rochester, Mich. native graduated with a degree in electrical engineering and was a CSC Academic All-District honoree in 2022. Buca established himself both on the field and in the classroom, leading Michigan on the pitch in the 2021 season with 12 points (5 goals, 2 assists) and a team-high 26 shots.
A team captain during the 2022 season, Buca battled injury all season during his fifth and final year of eligibility. He helped facilitate a GoFundMe in honor of teammate Carter Payne, donating the money to causes Payne was passionate about.
He is a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and was a two-time Big Ten Sportsmanship honoree. Buca earned both the Leaders and Best Awards and the Bates Deskins Award for most outstanding student-athlete in his class as a sophomore and junior after pacing U-M on the field and earning All-Big Ten Tournament team honors in the 2021 season.
Buca served as a Leadership Development Team Ambassador (LDTA) for the men's soccer team during COVID, most notably working with the pen pal program that communicated with a local fourth grade class. He was active with the Michigan Athletic Career Center (MACC), securing a summer internship with Stellantis, one of the largest automakers in the world. He also cofounded an email newsletter, Fueling Station, catered to student-athletes, fans and alumni.
The Big Ten Medal of Honor is acclaimed throughout the nation, and in particular by the NCAA "as one of the significant gestures yet made in college sports." The Big Ten Medal of Honor was expanded in 1982 to include one female student-athlete from each institution.
