March 24, 2009

NEWMAC Student-Athletes and Teams Receive NFHCA Academic Awards

Babson Park, Mass. - The National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) announced its 2008 Division III National Academic Squad as well as its 2008 National Academic Team Award last week and the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) was well represented in both awards.

In all, 65 NEWMAC student-athletes and seven conference teams were honored by the NFHCA. NEWMAC regular season and tournament champions, Springfield, had the most individual selections with 11. The Pride also received the Academic Team Award, as did Clark, MIT, Mount Holyoke, Smith, Wellesley and WPI. MIT finished with the fourth highest team GPA in Division III, posting a cumulative 3.50. In addition, three student-athletes became four-time honorees on the National Academic Squad, as Springfield's Jane Kelleher (Chatham, Mass.) and Jillian Urtz (Verona, N.Y.) joined Nicole Maglione (Charlton, Mass.) of WPI on the list for the fourth straight year.

The National Academic Squad recognizes those student-athletes who have achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.30 or higher through the first semester of the 2008-09 academic year. The National Academic Team Award recognizes those institutions that achieve a minimum GPA of 3.0 during the first semester of the 2008-09 academic year.

For a complete list of selections please visit http://www.eteamz.com/nfhca/index.cfm.