TURLOCK, CALIF. – Cal State East Bay's senior forward Yuto Hatayama took home a big academic award for the men's soccer team on Friday at the CCAA Tournament,
 
Hatayama was presented with the Elite 13 Award for men's soccer by CCAA Commissioner Allen Hardison and assistant commissioner Carol Rivera prior to the men's semifinal match at Cardinale Stadium.
 
Originally established as the CCAA Championship Scholar Award in the 2017-18 academic year, the Elite 13 Award was re-branded in the fall of 2021 to bring into focus the 13 CCAA championship sports that offer the award.
 
The Elite 13 Award recognizes the academic and athletic achievement of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached competition at the Conference championship level while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade point average participating in each CCAA-sponsored championship. The student-athlete must be at least a junior or senior in academic standing with at least 60 units completed at his or her current institution.
 
Hatayama becomes the first Pioneer men's soccer student-athlete to earn the Elite 13 award and the eighth student-athlete overall.  The senior from Suzuka, Japan is a Business Administration major and has a 3.855 GPA. 
 
Bonds earned a 2024-25 D2 Academic All-District Award as well as 2024-25 CCAA All-Academic and 2024 CCAA Fall Academic honors.