Ofeck Hazan receives NCAA’s Elite Scholar-Athlete award

LOS ANGELES — Ofeck Hazan’s drive to be the best doesn’t take place just on a volleyball court.

The University of Hawaii sophomore middle blocker attacks his school work every bit as hard as he does a volleyball.

That was made clear Friday night when he was presented with the NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete award during the championship social ahead of this weekend’s National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championship at Pauley Pavilion.

Hazan, who is majoring in finance, carries a 4.0 grade-point average. The award honors 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.

Hazan holds the highest cumulative GPA of any volleyball player among the four remaining teams.

“I don’t know if you can see on the court, but I am a big competitor and I’m always trying to be the best,” Hazan said. “I’m trying to be the best in class and honestly I hate getting into exams without knowing that I can answer all of the questions. So it’s all about the mental side.”

Hazan, who is from Zikhron-Ya’akov, Israel, received the award with both his mother and father in attendance.

He served in the Israeli military and fulfilled his commitment before joining the Rainbow Warriors prior to the start of the 2025 season.

On track to graduate in four years, Hazan plans to stay in the United States and hopefully find a job in California.

“I knew I wanted to work in real estate when I left Israel and I thought finance could really help me and give me a better look and a better point of view on the real estate side,” Hazan said. “I have a lot of friends that live in this area and just because I think the opportunities you can be exposed to are really, really good and if you know the right people, they can get you really far.”

Hazan has played in 21 of 33 matches for the Rainbow Warriors this season and averages 1.03 kills and 1.12 blocks per set while hitting .472.

He has been an important third middle during the season, filling in for both Justin Todd and Trevell Jordan when they have dealt with various injuries.

He’s done it while taking six classes during his spring semester.

“I think it just shows that you care more than others, because it is possible for anybody to achieve this, but it’s just a matter of how much you are going to put into it, and once I decided I’m not going to live in Israel for the next four years and take away the part of being with my family, I better do the best I can and achieve the highest possibility,” Hazan said. “This is my mindset of like, I’m risking a lot of things and giving a lot of things up and I took a chance on myself and I am trying to make it work.”

Hazan is the second UH student-athlete to receive the award this season, along with Gabrielle Doyle of the women’s water polo team.