By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — Nineteen Saint Mary's University fall student-athletes earned 2018 Academic All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference recognition, it was announced Wednesday.
 
For the seventh consecutive year, the MIAC has honored a record number of fall sport student-athletes with Academic All-Conference recognition.

A total of 427 student-athletes from the 13 MIAC institutions earned the prestigious honor this year after meeting all sport-specific athletic requirements and possessing a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or better on a 4.0 scale following the fall semester. To be eligible for the award, student-athletes must be a sophomore, junior or senior with at least one year (two semesters) at their current institution. Athletically, student-athletes in fall team sports (football, volleyball, soccer) must compete in 50 percent of their team's regular-season varsity contests. Cross country student-athletes are required to finish in the overall top 100 or their team's top seven at the 2018 MIAC Cross Country Championship. Between the on-field component and lofty GPA standard, the MIAC Academic All-Conference honor is a perfect blend of the balanced excellence championed by the MIAC and NCAA Division III.

This is now the seventh year in a row the total of Fall Academic All-Conference honorees has increased. In 2011, 301 student-athletes were recognized with Academic All-Conference distinction. That number rose to 330 in 2012, 334 in 2013, 356 in 2014, 357 in 2015, 380 in 2016, and 412 last year.

Football had the most honorees with 98, up nine from last season's 89. Women's soccer was not far behind with 94, one fewer than the sport record of 95 in 2017. Men's soccer had 67 honorees (68 in 2017), women's cross country had 66 (62 in 2017), volleyball had 56 (58 in 2017), and men's cross country had 46 (40 in 2017).

The Cardinal men's soccer team led the way for Saint Mary's with five student-athletes on the Academic All-MIAC Team, while the Cardinal men's cross country and women's soccer teams landed four student-athletes each, and the volleyball and women's cross country teams both boasted three selections.
 
Zach Bracken (Osseo, Minn.), Tyler Hyatt (Waseca, Minn.), Daniel Nolte (Owatonna, Minn.), Robbie Sobczak (Cloquet, Minn.), and Cole Van Houten (Pine Island, Minn.) all earned academic honors for the men's soccer team.
 
Ben Borash (Bowlus, Minn.), Jordan Malikowski (Royalton, Minn.), Tanner Moris (Crandon, Minn.), and Isaiah Olsem (Fulda, Minn.) represented the Cardinal men's cross country team, while Kendall Archer (Draper, Utah), Erin McElligott (New York City, N.Y.), Gabriella Pederson (Chaska, Minn.) and Mackenzie Waters (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) were named from the SMU women's soccer team.
 
Saint Mary's volleyball players Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.), Gloria Kitange (Rochester, Minn.), and Carley Cronen (Kandiyohi, Minn.), along with Danielle Franke (Mounds View, Minn.), Emily Ortiz (Albert Lea, Minn.), and Erika Thiel (Burr Ridge, Ill.) were also named to the all-academic team.