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Ten Patriot League Student-Athletes Named Academic All-District in At-Large Sports
May 18, 2012
CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – A total of 10 student-athletes in Patriot League sports earned Capital One Academic All-District honors in at-large sports from the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), it was announced Thursday. Navy was represented with five of the 10 selection, while Bucknell was next with three. Rounding out the list were Army and Colgate with one apiece. All 10 earned first-team laurels and advance to the national All-America balloting later this month. In addition, all had earned Academic All-Patriot League honors in their respective sports, while three were named Scholar-Athletes of the Year. Navy was represented on the men’s side in District 2 by seniors Mark Meyer (swimming) and Peter Reilly (golf), and junior Ben Bondurant (swimming). Navy placed two on the women’s list in juniors Jasmine DePompeo (lacrosse) and Laura Gorinski (swimming). Bucknell had a pair on the men’s side in District 2 in juniors Mike Huffner (lacrosse) and J.J. Szmadzinski (golf), while the lone Bison on the women’s list was senior Jillian O’Mara (rowing). There were two selections from the League on the men’s side in District 1 – Army junior Brendan Buckley (lacrosse) and Colgate junior James Queeney (lacrosse). Buckley, Szmadzinski and Gorinski were named Scholar-Athlete of the Year in men’s lacrosse, men’s golf and women’s swimming and diving, respectively, during the 2011-12 academic year. Buckley, a junior from Massapequa, N.Y., owns a 3.99 cumulative grade-point average as an engineering management major at the U.S. Military Academy. He finished the season leading the Patriot League with 2.0 caused turnovers per game, and emerged this spring as the Black Knights’ leading close defenseman. He logged a career-high five caused turnovers in Army’s thrilling 6-5 win at Bucknell in double overtime April 7, a victory that began the Black Knights’ push to the No. 3 seed in the League Tournament. Szmadzinski, the Patriot League Golf Scholar-Athlete of the Year, has a 3.90 GPA in management at Bucknell. The junior from Northville, Mich., played in six events for the Bison this season and led the team averaging 76.3 strokes per round. He helped Bucknell finish fourth at the Patriot League Championship when he tied for 19th with an 18-over 228 (79-75-74). Smadzinski has made the Patriot League’s Academic Honor Roll twice and appears well on his way to a third appearance. Gorinski was named the Scholar-Athlete of the Year in Women’s Swimming and Diving for the second consecutive year in February. She owns a 3.64 GPA while majoring in physics at the Naval Academy. A native of Greensburg, Pa., Gorinski was a second-team Academic All-District selection a year ago. She captured 60 points at the Patriot League Championships held at Navy in February, leading the Mids to their second League crown in three years. She set League and Championship Meet records in winning the 200 IM and 200 breast, while adding a title in the 100 breast as well. DePompeo finished the season with League-highs in assists (47) and points (92) while guiding the Navy women’s lacrosse team to its third straight League title. The Mids advanced to the NCAA Tournament after winning a play-in game for the third consecutive season before falling 14-7 at No. 5 North Carolina in the first round. DePompeo, a junior from Sayville, N.Y., has a 3.38 GPA in political science. She scored four goals and tallied an assist for a team-high five points in the loss to the Tar Heels. O’Mara earned her third appearance on the All-League first team in 2012 after helping Bucknell capture its seventh straight League rowing championship last month. The senior was named to the Academic All-League team for the second consecutive season and owns a 3.91 GPA double majoring in biology and French and francophone studies. O’Mara was part of the Bison’s varsity eight that was named Boat of the Year at the League championship. Queeney is the only junior captain of the Colgate men’s lacrosse team that captured its first NCAA Tournament victory last weekend with a 13-11 decision at sixth-seeded Massachusetts. The Reading, Mass., native owns a 4.15 GPA studying mathematics, and has two goals, 29 ground balls and nine caused turnovers in 17 games this season, all starts. Huffner earned All-League honors for the second year in a row when he was selected to the first team last month. The junior out of Elmira, N.Y., boasts a 3.52 GPA in biology, and was one of the Bison’s top defensive performers in 2012. He led Bucknell with 27 caused turnovers and collected 31 ground balls. He’s made the Academic All-League squad each of the last two years. Bondurant has a 3.42 GPA in ocean engineering at the Naval Academy. The Atlanta, Ga., native won the 200 IM at this year’s League Championship Meet and captured silver in both the 100 and 200 fly events. A two-time first-team All-Patriot League honoree, Bondurant also won the 200 IM at the 2011 League championships. Meyer is a two-time Patriot League Champion in the 200 fly after capturing his second win at the 2012 championships. Meyer advanced to the NCAA championships in the 200 fly last year, competed at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials and qualified for the 2012 trials as well. The Bethesda, Md., native owns a 3.43 GPA in systems engineering at Navy. Reilly, a senior honors history major at the Naval Academy, boasts a 3.48 cumulative GPA. The 2011 Scholar-Athlete of the Year in Golf, Reilly is a three-time member of the All-League second team, and owned the team’s lowest stroke average at 75.1 entering the NCAA Regionals Thursday. Reilly finished sixth at the Patriot League Championship and helped the Midshipmen earn their sixth team title. In order to be eligible for the district ballot, student-athletes must have achieved a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.30, be at least a sophomore academically and a starter or key player on their respective team. The sports that make up the at-large list include women's bowling, women's crew, fencing, women's field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming, tennis, men's volleyball, water polo and men's wrestling. Student-athletes on the All-District First-Team are included on CoSIDA's Academic All-America ballot. Two student-athletes from full-member League institutions garnered an Academic All-District nod in non-League sports. Lehigh junior Robert Hamlin was named to the District 2 first team in men’s wrestling, while Army junior Ryan Leets was named to the first team in District 1 in men’s ice hockey. 2012 Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District in At-Large Sports District 1 District 2 Women’s First Team |
