Football leads Conference football programs with 2.916 team GPA over 2018-19 academic year
Women's cross country leads the Conference with a 3.609 team GPA over the 2018-19 academic year
NE10 Announces Team Academic Excellence Award recipients
Haite was one of two football student-athletes to make the NE10 Academic All-Conference team in the fall (PHOTO BY: Andrew Katsampes) |
EASTON, Mass. (June 26, 2018) – The Stonehill College football and women's cross country programs have been recognized for their efforts in the classroom by receiving the Northeast-10 Conference Team Academic Excellence Award, the Conference office announced.
Stonehill football earned a 2.916 team grade point average over the 2018-19 academic year to lead the NE10's 10 football programs and received this award for the second-straight year. The women's cross country team earned a 3.609 team GPA to top all 15 women's cross country programs in the Conference during this academic year. NE10 Team Excellence Awards honor the programs with the highest team GPA in each of the Conferences' 24 sports throughout the academic year. In total 211 of the league's 295 teams achieved a team grade point average of 3.0 or higher. The highest GPA by sport is recognized and the teams that are awarded receive a plaque to commemorate their accomplishment.
"Winning this award for the second-consecutive academic year is a huge testament to the work ethic of our student-athletes," said third-year head coach Eli Gardner. "As a staff, we couldn't be more proud of the discipline, intellect, and grit displayed by these young men. Some places or people can talk about making a 40-year decision when choosing a college or university, but our student-athletes are living it."
Stonehill's football program had 50 of its student-athletes owning a 3.0 cumulative grade point average or above after the spring semester. Both juniors Zac Pungitore and Matt Haite earned NE10 Academic All-Conference honors during the fall season. Junior Michael Curtin was recognized at Stonehill's Academic Excellence Recognition Breakfast in the spring to recognize those student-athletes with the highest cumulative grade point average through the fall 2018 semester. Also in April, football saw four seniors named to the 2019 National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society, including Stephen Agnatovech, Jerel Archer, Anthony Gill, DJ Haskins, and Theo Slepski. All five were honored for having maintained a 3.20 cumulative grade point average or higher throughout their college career, while also contributing to the team as a starter or significant contributor in one's last season of eligibility.
"It's never shocking when you have student-athletes that are driven and have high expectations of themselves," stated head coach Karen Boen, in her 22nd year. "Each woman on this team is internally driven and it's the perfect example of what can be done when you surround yourself with others who have high expectations of themselves and each other."
Lastra was named NE10 Athlete of the Year and earned Google Cloud Academic All-District first team honors as a junior |
The women's cross country program saw a remarkable 100-percent of their roster on the NE10 Academic Honor Roll this spring semester as all of them averaged a 3.00 or higher. Following another tremendous season where the team captured their 17th NE10 Championship, 15th NCAA Division II East Regional Championship, and posted a 14th-place finish at the NCAA Division II Championship, they earned their seventh-straight U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association All-Academic Team Award. This award is given to teams that compiled a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher and scored at their NCAA regional meet. Individually, senior Makenzie Cyr, juniors Anna Lastra, Alyssa Freeman, and Jordan Callahan, sophomore Sam Curtin, and freshman Rebecca Erhard received USTFCCCA All-Academic recognition as well for posting a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 or higher, while also finishing among the top-30 percent of total eligible runners at the regional championship or in the top half of the field at the NCAA Championships. Lastra was also honored at the Academic Excellence Recognition Breakfast, as she received her first St. Thomas Aquinas, Patron Saint of Students, Medal. The junior was also the 21st name to be added to Stonehill's women's cross country and track & field list of Google Cloud Academic All-District™Team members.
With 21 intercollegiate sports, Stonehill boasts one of the top athletic and academic programs in the country. Stonehill has won the Northeast-10 Conference Presidents' Cup five times, all coming within the last 14 years. The Skyhawks have received the NCAA Division II Presidents' Award for Academic Achievement each of the first eight years of the program's existence of honoring institutions with an Academic Success Rate (ASR) of 90-percent or better. Stonehill has earned a 96% Academic Success Ranking (ASR) by the NCAA, which considers the academic success rate of the institution based on the graduation rate of student-athletes, good for seventh among all NCAA Division II institutions, with eight Skyhawk teams receiving a perfect rating of 100%. In addition, the Skyhawks are ranked 11th in the National Collegiate Scouting Association (NCSA) Power Rankings for Division II used to assess the academic and athletic standards of all NCAA and NAIA athletic programs.
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