FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (April 23, 2025) - Two Northern Arizona student-athletes were honored at the Gold Axe and Distinguished Senior Awards Ceremony. Swimmer Francesca Criscione and diver Maegan Jensen received the prestigious Gold Axe Award on Tuesday.
The Gold Axe Award has been a symbol of recognition at NAU since 1933, a year after the student body adopted the axe as the symbol of the university's athletics. Each semester, a select group of graduating seniors are presented with the award in recognition of their outstanding achievements and distinguished service to NAU and the greater community.
To be eligible for the Gold Axe Award, students must have completed at least 90 credit hours and apply during their final undergraduate semester.
The pair are the Athletics Department's 61st and 62nd recipients of the award since 2004.
Criscione, a marketing major, holds a 3.92 grade point average and was one of 47 Gold Axe recipients this semester. She was named the Western Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year and a two-time individual gold medalist in the 2021 WAC Championships, where she placed first in both the 500-yard freestyle (4:54.09) and the 1650-yard freestyle (16:55.94). She also contributed to a first-place finish in the 800-yard freestyle relay, earning another gold medal.
At this year's WAC Championship, Criscione earned a bronze medal in the 400-yard individual medley, finishing in 4:20.17, and helped lead the swimming and diving team to its 12th consecutive conference championship.
Outside the pool, Criscione has excelled academically. A nine-time Dean's List honoree, she is expected to graduate magna cum laude this semester. She has received the Golden Eagle Award four times and has served as a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee while contributing to the Flagstaff community through various volunteer opportunities. Additionally, she has played a key role in the NAU Foundation, sharing her story with over 200 donors alongside NAU President José Luis Cruz Rivera and Foundation CEO Nick Lobejko.
Jensen, a four-year diver, made an immediate impact as a freshman with multiple NCAA Zone qualifying scores and placed third in the 3-meter at the WAC Championships. In her sophomore year, she won the 3-meter at the Lumberjack Diving Invite, placed in the top six in all events at the WAC Championships, and qualified for the NCAA Zone E Championships in both springboard events. As a junior, she earned bronze in the 3-meter at the WAC Championships and was named WAC Diver of the Week. In her senior season, she posted career-best scores in all events, finished second (1-meter), fourth (3-meter), and fifth (platform) at the WAC Championships, qualified for NCAA Zone E again, and earned a second WAC Diver of the Week honor.
Away from the pool, Jensen maintains a 3.98 cumulative GPA and has been on the Dean's List for four years. She is double majoring in Exercise Physiology, and Health Sciences Nutrition and Foods. Jensen served as a representative on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and earned the Golden Eagle Award for four consecutive years. Additionally, she was named the 2025 Spring Distinguished Senior in both the Food and Nutrition Program and the Department of Health Sciences. She is also a three-time CSCAA Individual All-American Scholar.
