ATL Standard

Senior guard Lotta-Maj Lahtinen of Georgia Tech's women's basketball team is one of the 30 candidates competing for the 2021-22 Senior CLASS Award.

In addition to the Senior CLASS Award, Lahtinen was also named the 2021 Atlantic Coast Conference's Most Improved Player, with an average of 15 points per game, Georgia Tech said Dec. 7. 

"In addition to excelling on the court, Lahtinen has dedicated time to giving back to the community. In 2019, Lahtinen joined fellow Georgia Tech student-athletes and staff members on a service trip to Puerto Rico with Jackets Without Borders to help a local community rebuild after Hurricane Maria," Georgia Tech said. 

Lahtinen had excelled on and off the court while also representing the women’s basketball team on the Student-Athlete Advisory Board (SAAB) and serving on the school's mental health and diversity, equity, and inclusion committees. 

Alongside her teammates, Lahtinen helped to build a home for a local Atlanta family in partnership with Habitat for Humanity, while also being an active member of the women’s basketball reading program, Buzzer Readers, by participating in school visits and book readings for young children in the area.

By the end of the conference season, Lahtinen was tabbed for the all-ACC first team by several media outlets and the all-ACC second team by many of the league’s head coaches. As team captain, Lahtinen helped Georgia Tech make it to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 for only the second time in the program's history, Georgia Tech said. 

To be considered eligible for the Senior Class Award, student-athletes must be classified as NCAA Division I seniors while maintaining notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character, and competition, according to the press release. Through a national voting initiative, the 30 candidates will be narrowed down to 10 finalists in February and one male and one female will be selected as winners.