Loretto, Pa. – Five Saint Francis teams earned NEC Team GPA Awards on Thursday, as announced by the conference office.
Head track and field and cross country coach Doug Hoover led four teams to GPA titles. Both the men's and women's cross country teams led the NEC with 3.647 and 3.564 gpa's, respectively. The cross country teams combined to put 26 members on the Fall Academic Honor Roll (3.20 gpa or higher), 12 of which landed on the Fall Commissioner's Honor Roll (3.75 gpa or higher). Both the men's and women's teams earned USTFCCCA All-Academic Honors.
Bryce England (Williamsburg, Pa./Williamsburg, Pa.) and
Danae Peters (Manheim, Pa./Manheim Central) earned Scholar-Athlete honors, while England garnered USTFCCCA individual All-Academic Honors.
The women's indoor track and field team earned the award with a 3.663 team gpa as did the women's outdoor track and field team with a mark of 3.663. The indoor team placed 32 of its members on the Winter Academic Honor Roll, 19 of which were Commissioner's Honor Roll members. The outdoor track and field team placed 33 on the Spring Academic Roll and 19 on the Spring Commissioner's Honor Roll.
All four of the teams won the award in 2015-16 as well.
"In order for these men and women to be successful in athletics, they know they have to put in the work in the classroom," said Hoover. "They've made the same commitment to their academic success and have found a great balance between academics and athletics that is allowing them to be successful on both fronts. This recognition is a tribute to the commitment to academic excellence that these students have made, and the consistent effort they put forth in the classroom."
The Red Flash women's swimming team was the other group to be recognized with a conference-best 3.462 gpa.
Twenty-two of the 25 members on head coach
Rory Coleman's squad earned Winter Academic Honor Roll distinction while nine landed on the Commissioner's Honor Roll.
"I'm very excited for our team," said Coleman. "We encourage them to work hard in the classroom, so to see their hard work pay off is awesome. They are a very motivated group of students that understand the reason they came to Saint Francis was to get a great education. Thank you to student-athlete development and all of the professors who help our team succeed each and every day in the classroom!"
As a department, Saint Francis trailed only Sacred Heart in number of teams to win GPA awards. Sacred Heart took home the NEC Institutional Academic Award. Over the course of the academic year, 272 Saint Francis athletes placed on the Academic Honor Roll and 128 others earned Commissioner's Honor Roll distinction.
