MIAC All-Academic TeamWINONA, Minn. — Eleven Saint Mary's University fall student-athletes earned Academic All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference recognition, it was announced Thursday.
This fall, the MIAC recognized a record 355 student-athletes, who represented the conference's 13 institutions. The previous record of 334 was established just one year ago (2013) and included men's and women's golf selections. This year, MIAC administrators voted to alter golf's athletic requirement and move the honor to the spring, so the MIAC racked up 21 more Fall Academic All-Conference honorees despite two fewer sports included this time around.
Student-athletes must be a sophomore, junior, or senior with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale to qualify for MIAC Academic All-Conference recognition. Athletically, student-athletes in football, soccer, and volleyball must compete in 50% of their team's varsity regular season contests. Cross country runners must finish in the top 50 at the conference championship or be in the top seven of their team at the MIAC Championships.
The women's cross country team led the way for Saint Mary's, boasting four student-athletes on the Academic All-MIAC Team, while the Cardinal men's soccer team landed three student-athletes.
Bridget Hayes (Chicago, Ill.),
Mary Hayes (Chicago, Ill.)
Katie Stolz (Forest Lake, Minn.), and
Allie Thiel (Burr Ridge, Ill.) earned academic honors for the women's cross country team, while
Joey Petrich (Elk River, Minn.),
Mike Tabar (Skokie, Ill.), and
Joe Bosco (Elk Grove Village, Ill.) represented the men's soccer team.
Cardinal women's soccer players
Caroline Blackwood (Norwalk, Ohio) and
Emma Schaefer (Falcon Heights, Minn.), along with
Aaron Haley (Plainview, Minn.) of the men's cross country team, and
Molly Grover (Zumbrota, Minn.) of the Saint Mary's volleyball team were also named the all-academic team.
MIAC Academic All-Conference teams are announced twice annually, after the completion of both the fall and spring academic semesters. The MIAC Winter/Spring 2014-15 Academic All-Conference selections will be announced in late June.
