CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--A quartet of America East basketball players added national academic awards to their resume over the past week, including three named to the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association (ADA) Scholar-Athlete Teams. Additionally, UMBC's Michelle Kurowski and University of New Hampshire's Denise Beliveau each secured Lowe's Senior CLASS Second-Team recognition, finishing among the top 10 of all Division I women's basketball seniors, making America East one of just two
conferences, along with the Pac 12, to have two players on the national
teams.
University of Vermont sophomore Luke Apfeld is one of 11 members of the Men's ADA Scholar-Athlete Team, while Kurowski, a senior, and University of Hartford junior Alex Hall each earned a spot on the 11-member Women's Scholar-Athlete Team.
Basketball
players from all Division I-AAA ADA member institutions are eligible for
these prestigious awards. Each of the nominees was required to have a
minimum grade point average of 3.20 (on a 4.00 scale) in undergraduate
study and have been a starter or important reserve with legitimate
athletics credentials. Nominated student-athletes must have participated
in at least 50 percent of the team's games listed on the nomination
form.
Apfeld, an America East All-Academic Team selection, is an English/Sociology major with a 3.82 GPA and had the third-highest GPA among the male honorees. He finished the 2011-12 season with 9.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game and helped the Catamounts claim the America East Men's Basketball Championship and defeat Lamar in an NCAA First Round game.
Kurowski received the Division I-AAA award for the second straight year in addition to Capital One Academic All-District First Team and America East All-Academic Team selections. She earned the America East Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year award in 2011 and graduated Magna Cum Laude in three years last May, maintaining a 3.84 GPA, and has earned a 4.0 in her first semester of graduate school. Kurowski earned second-team All-Conference honors last month and finished her career second all-time in scoring at UMBC.
Hall, a Management and Economics and Finance major, sports a 3.95 GPA, the second-highest mark on the scholar-athlete team. She earned America East All-Academic Team status this season and was one of two captains for the Hawks who reached the postseason for the eighth straight year. Hall averaged 6.6 points per game and led Hartford in three-point shooting percentage (.329).
Beliveau, along with Kurowski, was tabbed as a top-10 Senior CLASS Award Finalist in February after being among the 30 nominees named earlier in the season. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in
School®, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total
student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in
athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Beliveau holds a 3.51 GPA in graduate school after receiving her undergraduate degree in 2010. She is a two-time America East All-Academic Team pick and earned America East First-Team All-Conference and All-Defensive recognition this season. Beliveau notched a league-best 10 double-doubles this season and closed out the regular season ranked in the top-10 in nine statistical categories.
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Men's Scholar-Athlete Team
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Name
|
Institution
|
GPA
|
Major
|
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Luke Patrick Apfeld
|
Vermont
|
3.82
|
English/Sociology
|
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Ben Averkamp
|
Loyola Chicago
|
3.77
|
Biology
|
|
Travis Bader
|
Oakland
|
3.32
|
Communications
|
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Taylor Darby
|
Pepperdine
|
3.37
|
Integrated Marketing
|
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Matthew Dickey
|
North Carolina Asheville
|
3.30
|
Health & Wellness
|
|
Walt Gibler
|
Loyola Chicago
|
3.73
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Psychology
|
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Chase Hallam
|
Denver
|
3.88
|
Accounting
|
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Mick Hedgepeth
|
Belmont
|
3.70
|
Accounting
|
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Tony Meier
|
Wisconsin Milwaukee
|
3.65
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Business
|
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Scott Saunders
|
Belmont
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3.84
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Finance/Marketing
|
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Adam Sollazzo
|
East Tennessee State
|
3.72
|
Business Marketing
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Scholar-Athlete
of the Year: Adam Sollazzo, East Tennessee State
Postgraduate Scholarship
Recipient: Mick Hedgepeth, Belmont
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Women's Scholar-Athlete Team
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Name
|
Institution
|
GPA
|
Major
|
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Maggie Blair
|
Manhattan
|
4.00
|
Finance/Management
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Tara Booker
|
George Washington
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3.38
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Sociology & Organizational Science
|
|
Courtney Chihil
|
Florida Gulf Coast
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3.86
|
Nursing
|
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Lily Grenci
|
Siena
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3.83
|
Sociology
|
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Alexandra Hall
|
Hartford
|
3.95
|
Management/Economics & Finance
|
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Dayon Hall-Jones
|
Missouri Kansas City
|
3.41
|
Psychology
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Sarah Hansen
|
Florida Gulf Coast
|
3.95
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Chemistry
|
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Michelle Kurowski
|
UMBC
|
4.00
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Teaching/Early Childhood Education
|
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Kevi Luper
|
Oral Roberts
|
3.49
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Business Administration
|
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Anna Martin
|
DePaul
|
3.56
|
Commerce: Intended Management
|
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Julie Wojta
|
Wisconsin Green Bay
|
3.58
|
Business Administration & Accounting
|
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Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Sarah Hansen, Florida Gulf Coast
Postgraduate Scholarship
Recipient: Tara Booker, George Washington
Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Winner
Nnemkadi Ogwumike, F, Stanford
Lowe's Senior CLASS First Team
Amanda Johnson, F, Oregon
Emile Johnson, G, UC Santa Barbara
Natalie Novosel, G, Notre Dame
Justine Raterman, F, Dayton
Lowe's Senior CLASS Second Team
Denise Beliveau, F, New Hampshire
Brittany Carter, G, Memphis
Lauren Edwards, G, Princeton
Michelle Kurowski, G, UMBC
Brittany Rayburn, G, Purdue
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