Included among the United States Naval Academy's Class of 2020 were 18 members of the varsity sports program who earned Graduate with Distinction honors.
 
Those who garner Graduate with Distinction laurels finish in the top-10 percent of the graduating class in the Overall Order of Merit, which includes academics, military performance, conduct and physical education standing.  There were 103 members of the Class of 2020 who earned the accolade, including Valedictorian Kaden Dohm (Maple Grove, Minn.) who was a member of Navy lightweight rowing program.  
 
This is the fifth year in a row, the eighth time in the last 10 years and 15th time since 2000 in which the No. 1 graduate on the Overall Order of Merit is a varsity sport athlete.
 
Dohm was one of seven varsity athletes to rank among the top-11 graduates in the class.  Sprint football players David Postma (Bellevue, Wash.) and J.T. Thompson (Stratham, N.H.) ranked second and fourth, respectively, Paige Miles (Oklahoma City, Okla.) from the volleyball team ranked fifth, Cadie Higginson (New Orleans, La.) from the women's soccer team ranked ninth, Christian Hoffman (Sandy Hook, Conn.) from the offshore sailing team ranked 10^th and Sydney Fortson (Claremont, Calif.) from the women's soccer team ranked 11^th.
 
Varsity Athletes in Navy's Class of 2020 who Earned Graduate with Distinction Honors
Kaden Dohm, Lightweight Rowing
David Postma, Sprint Football
J.T. Thompson, Sprint Football
Paige Miles, Volleyball
Cadie Higginson, Women's Soccer
Christian Hoffman, Offshore Sailing
Sydney Fortson, Women's Soccer
Noah Chaskin, Lightweight Rowing
Jamie Miller, Women's Swimming
Peter Gelbach, Lightweight Rowing
Timothy Forman, Offshore Sailing
Patrick Guinan, Sprint Football
Travis Brannan, Football
Natalie LaPlaca, Volleyball
George Gilliam, Heavyweight Rowing
Jake Klosowski, Heavyweight Rowing
Morgan Frazier, Women's Golf
Pat Urrutia, Lightweight Rowing