When Carson Haskins first arrived at Indiana University in the fall of 2018, he already had a handful of accolades to his name.
Haskins, a four-year Missouri high school state champion, compiled a 94-0 record at Parkway South High School in St. Louis without losing a single set throughout his high school career. On top of being the No. 1 ranked player in his home state, Haskins was the No. 13 ranked recruit in the nation upon entering college.
These honors did not go unnoticed, as Haskins was eventually recognized as the Missouri High School Boys Tennis Player of the Decade in June 2020. With it, his name was etched in his hometown’s record books.
He’s also been winning off the court. Haskins was named the winner of the 2022 Scholastic Achievement Award on Feb. 15, which honors the IU scholar-athlete with the highest GPA on his or her respective team.
Haskins is majoring in informatics and minoring in cybersecurity, both of which are housed in the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering. He has an additional business minor from the Kelley School of Business.
According to Haskins, playing a Division I sport has made it easier to balance his obligations and focus on his academic success.
“I really found a way to keep myself motivated,” Haskins said. “If you’re focusing on making sure you’re doing everything you can to get better at tennis, that means taking care of your schoolwork, too.”
His methods have certainly worked.
In addition to his newly acquired academic honor, Haskins is nothing short of accomplished when it comes to his on-court priorities. This season, Haskins currently plays at the No. 1 singles and doubles positions for the Hoosiers.
The highlight of Haskins’ freshman season came in April 2019 when he rose to the No. 39 spot on Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s rankings when playing at the top doubles position with then-sophomore Brandon Lam. With it, Haskins crossed off his collegiate goal of achieving an ITA ranking in doubles. The captain was awarded a Big Ten Sportsmanship Award during his sophomore season, and has notched over 40 singles wins in his collegiate career.
Still, most of Haskins’ success as a Hoosier has come in the classroom.
His academic honors include three ITA Scholar Athlete awards, two Academic All-Big Ten placements, two Big Ten Distinguished Scholar awards and winning the Academic Excellence Award, which is given to IU scholar-athletes with a perfect 4.0 GPA.
Haskins’ said the high standards he sets for himself have made him an intelligent athlete and responsible teammate.
“It’s important to get your work done whenever you have free time so you can prioritize your sleep right before a match,” Haskins said. “For me, it’s all about learning how to prioritize all the activities that I have going on and being able to move them around in a way that’s healthy and helps me and my teammates,”
As it turns out, diligence runs in the program.
Indiana’s men’s tennis has consistently posted cumulative GPAs of 3.6 and above, placing the team in high standing among the university’s athletics. Several Indiana athletes have placed on the ITA and Big Ten All-Academic teams, and many more have been awarded individual recognition by IU on a yearly basis. However, the group’s most notable accomplishment was celebrated during the 2019-20 season.
Indiana won the Herbert Cup, which is given to IU’s athletic program with the highest cumulative GPA.
“A lot of our team does very well in school, and in general we have a really good culture about that,” Haskins said. “Hopefully I can be a role model to others in that sense as well.”
Haskins’ inspiration to excel off the court by achieving high academic standing, and growth in his character, dates back to his freshman year of college. He said he modeled himself according to his teammates’ behaviors after seeing how respected they were.
“I looked at each teammate and then tried to find the best quality in them,” Haskins said. “I tried to replicate that in my own way.”
Some of Haskins’ early role models include alums Andrew Redding and Antonio Cembellin.
Redding received the Jack D. Tichenor Award in 2020. This achievement recognizes the male scholar-athlete with the highest GPA in all of IU athletics.
“Guys like Andrew always did really well in school and in the lineup,” Haskins said “I realized that if he could do that while taking some of the hardest classes at IU, then I could do that as well.”
Cembellin remains one of Indiana’s most decorated tennis players to date, earning first-team All-Big Ten honors and winning the ITA Most Improved Senior Award in 2019.
“Every time he got on the court, he put in 110 percent,” Haskins said about Cembellin. “So when I was practicing, I knew that I had to give it my all.”
While successful, Haskins’ first year with the Hoosiers was not perfect. In fact, the word “perfect” itself has negative connotations, according to the senior.
“I’m definitely a perfectionist, and that hurt me at some points,” Haskins said. “If I ever lost a match, I would shut myself off and not talk to anyone.”
Since then, Haskins said he has been intentional about creating a hardworking, team-first environment.
“Now, I’m realizing that what I’m striving to do here is more than just myself,” Haskins said. “I’m trying to build a culture, set goals for the team, and have a positive impact on as many people as possible.”
One of those team goals includes earning an NCAA tournament appearance. Haskins will have not one, but two more seasons to lead Indiana into postseason play thanks to his ambitious academic endeavors.
Haskins plans to stay at IU through 2023 in order to earn his master’s degree in cybersecurity risk management, a program that combines classes from Luddy, Kelley, and the Maurer School of Law.
His aspirations to earn a graduate degree from a hybrid of three different schools’ programs can be traced back to Haskins’ initial decision to attend IU. Haskins said he wanted a collegiate experience that would allow him to branch out into multiple well-regarded programs and build a substantial resume.
By the time he graduates, Haskins’ tennis resume will be just as valuable.
His time on the team will be defined not only by his success on the court, but his ability to prepare his younger teammates to take on the same roles he once strived to work towards himself — captain and No. 1 player.
No matter the outcome of his remaining two seasons, Haskins will be remembered by the Indiana men’s tennis team as an embodiment of success and character.
