LOS ANGELES — University of Hawai'i sophomore Ofeck Hazan was named the recipient of the NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete award for the 2026 National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Championship.
 
Hazan, majoring in finance, currently carries a 4.0 GPA. The sophomore from Zikhron-Ya'akov, Israel was presented with the award during the championship social on Friday, May 8 in Los Angeles, Calif.
 
Hazan is the second UH student-athlete to receive the Elite Scholar-Athlete (formerly ELITE 90) Award this season after water polo's Gabrielle Doyle was honored last month. In addition, he is the second UH men's volleyball player to claim the award, joining Kāna'i Akana (2022).
 
The Elite Scholar-Athlete award recognizes the true essence of student-athletes by honoring the individuals who have reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in their sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among their peers. The Elite Scholar-Athlete award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's championships.
 
Eligible student-athletes are sophomores or above academically who have participated in a sport for at least two years with their school. All ties are broken based on the number of credits completed.
 
In all, UH has claimed nine Elite Scholar-Athlete awards in four sports. Other award winners were Stephanie Brandt (women's volleyball, 2009), Katie Spieler (2016, beach volleyball), Amarens Genee (women's water polo, 2013), Taylor Molde (women's water polo, 2015), and Raha Peiravani (women's water polo, 2024 and '25).
 
For more information on the Elite Scholar-Athlete award winners, log on to https://www.ncaa.org/elitescholarathlete.
 
The second-seeded Rainbow Warriors (28-5) will face Long Beach State in the semifinals of the NCAA championship on Saturday at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles. The match is set for 3:30 p.m. Hawai'i Time (6:30 p.m. Pacific Time).