Laurent of the University of Wisconsin La Crosse (left) and Spear of Columbia University (right) were named as the Academic All-America® of the Year Award winners in the University and College Divisions, respectively. See the full All-America First/Second/Third Team honorees here for the men's at-large university and college divisions.
The Men’s At-Large program for the Academic All-America® includes the sports of fencing, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, tennis and water polo.
2010 ESPN the Magazine's Academic All-America At-Large Men's Teams (PDF)
2010 ESPN the Magazine's Academic All-America At-Large Men's Teams (.doc) TOWSON, Md. – Senior fencer Jeff Spear of Columbia University and
senior wrestler Dan Laurent of the University of Wisconsin La Crosse head the 2010 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large Teams, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Spear and Laurent were named as the Academic All-America® of the Year Award winners in the University and College Divisions, respectively.
The Men’s At-Large program for the Academic All-America® includes the sports of fencing, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, tennis and water polo.An evolutionary biology of human species major with a 4.07 GPA (grade point average),
Spear is a two-time second team All-American selection who earned first team All-Ivy League honors three times. He received the 2010 NCAA Elite 88 award for fencing, which is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative G.P.A. participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's 88 championships. The 2008 NCAA champion, Spear finished seventh at the national championship this year and took second place at the regional.
A native of Wynantskill, N.Y., Spear completed his career with a 143-46 record in sabre. He is a two-time Intercollegiate Fencing Gold Medalist and was awarded an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship this year. He is the first Lion to be awarded with an NCAA postgraduate scholarship since 2007 and is the first Columbia student-athlete to be named Academic All-America of the Year in any sport.
Spear is the only repeat selection on the 2010 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large University Division first team. He graduates as Salutatorian of his Columbia University senior class and was selected the Class of 2010's top scholar-athlete.
Laurent, a biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology major with a 3.94 GPA, won the 2010 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championship in the 285-pound division, his third consecutive national title. He was also named as the 2010 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Wrestler of the Year after winning his fourth straight WIAC title. Laurent compiled a 33-3 record during the 2010 season and became the fourth wrestler in WIAC history to win four consecutive 285-pound titles.
A native of Mishicot,
Wis., Laurent compiled a 124-27 career record, the seventh-best record in school history. At four national tournaments, he compiled a 12-2 record.
Honored as the 2010 WIAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for wrestling, he was selected to the National Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar All-America Team three times. The two-year captain was named as the 2008 UW-L Biochemistry Student of the Year. In 2010, he led the Eagles to a second place finish at the NCAA Division III Championship Meet. He also helped UW-L finish as national runner-up in 2008.
University Division Academic All-America® Men's At-Large TeamsAlthough Spear is the only repeat selection on the 2010 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large University Division first team, four honorees graduated from the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large second team.
On the 15-member ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large University Division first team, there are five swimmers, three ice hockey players, two wrestlers and two lacrosse players. Three members of the first team have perfect 4.00 GPA’s (grade point average) while one has a 4.07.
The average of the 15 members of the Academic All-America® University Division first team was an amazing 3.83 GPA.Senior lacrosse All-American Max Quinzani of Duke,
senior Tyler Ruegsegger of the Denver ice hockey team, senior tennis player Gustave Diep of New Mexico State and senior ice hockey standout Colin Greening of Cornell earned first team honors for the first time.
Quinzani and Ruegsegger were named to the second team in 2009 and earned third team notice in 2008.
Senior swimmers Jordan Anderson of Auburn, Jack Brown (Arizona) and Stefan Sigrist (Ohio State) are joined on the first team by
junior swimmers Nathan Adrian of California and
Alex Buck (U.S. Naval Academy).
Senior wrestlers Brent Metcalf (Iowa) and J.P. O'Connor (Harvard) are also members of the first team, along with
ice hockey standout Dion Knelsen of Alaska Fairbanks,
lacrosse player Andrew Maisano (U.S. Military Academy) and
skier Matt Gelso of Colorado.A History major with a 3.61 GPA,
Quinzani led Duke to its first-ever NCAA championship in men's lacrosse with a 6-5 win over Notre Dame on Memorial Day. A three-time All-America pick, he was a second team All-American in 2010 and earned a spot on the all-tournament team at the NCAA Championship. As a senior, he led the Blue Devils with a school record 68 goals, the eighth-highest total in NCAA history. The Duxbury, Mass., native finished his career as the second-leading scorer in NCAA history with 199 goals. Quinzani, who scored the game-winning goal with 14 seconds left in Duke’s semi-final win over Virginia, also set a NCAA record by registering a point in 66 consecutive games. In 78 career games, he scored 199 goals with 37 assists and was a three-time selection as first team All-Atlantic Coast Conference.
A native of Lakewood, Col.,
Ruegsegger tallied a career high 41 points on 16 goals and 25 assists as a senior, leading the Pioneers to their 21st NCAA Tournament appearance. A management major with a 3.95 GPA, he earned All-Western Collegiate Hockey Association second team honors and was named as the WCHA Scholar-Athlete for the third straight year. With 28 career power play goals, he ranks third on Denver’s all-time list. One of the top 50 scorers in school history, Ruegsegger tallied 123 points on 56 goals and 67 assists in 147 career games. Named to the prestigious Beta Gamma Sigma Business Honorary as a junior, he led Denver to 97 wins, one WHCA championship and three NCAA Tournament appearances in his career. As a senior, he helped the nationally-ranked Pioneers post a 27-10-4 record.
A biochemistry major with a minor in biology and a perfect 4.00 GPA,
Diep became the first New Mexico State tennis player to be selected to the Academic All-America® Men’s University Division At-Large Team in 2009 with his second team honor. A native of Paris, France, he won 11 singles matches and 17 doubles matches as a senior. A two-time second team All-Western Athletic Conference selection, he was also named to the Academic All-WAC team twice.
An applied economics and management major who carries a 3.99 GPA.,
Greening earned the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award after leading Cornell in scoring with 15 goals and 20 assists in 2010. Only the second player in school history to lead the squad in scoring three straight seasons, he was named as the ECAC Hockey Student-Athlete of the Year. Greening was also named first-team All-Ivy League for the second year in a row. The St. John’s, Newfoundland native finished his career with 55 goals and 118 points in 137 games. As a senior, he led Cornell to a 21-9-4 record, the ECAC championship and an NCAA Tournament berth. In April, he signed a professional contract with Ottawa of the National Hockey League.
A biomedical studies major with a 3.92 GPA.,
Anderson earned three All-American honors as a senior at Auburn and ended his career as a four-time All-American. A Rhodes Scholar, he was awarded the 2010 H. Boyd McWhorter Southeastern Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, receiving a post-graduate scholarship. A member of the SEC champion 200-medley relay team, he was a team captain who was the SEC runner-up in the 200-butterfly twice. A native of Roanoke, Va., Anderson is a member of the Chi Alpha Sigma and Phi Kappa Phi honor societies. He will be studying at Oxford University in the fall.
A 10-time All-American who holds the school record in the 400 individual medley,
Brown is a psychology major with a minor in political science who holds a 3.57 GPA. A member of the 2009-10 USA Swimming National Team, he won the 200 IM. and the 400 IM at the 2009 U.S. Open. A three-time member of the Pacific-10 Conference All-Academic Team, Brown helped Arizona finish third at the NCAA Division I Championship Meet in 2010. Named as the National Swimmer of the Week in late January, he was also a member of the Wildcats’ national championship team as a sophomore.
A native of Schaffhausen, Switzerland,
Sigrist won the 1650-freestyle at the Big Ten Championship Meet in 2010 with a pool and Ohio State record time of 14:50.46. A political science and communications major with a 3.92 GPA, he earned All-American honors by placing fifth in the 1650-free at the NCAA Championship. Sigrist, who received honorable mention All-American honors in the 500-freestyle at the NCAA meet, led the Buckeyes to the Big Ten championship as a senior. A Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, Sigrist earned the 2010 Big Ten Medal of Honor.
The NCAA champion in the 100-free,
Adrian led California to a second place finish at the NCAA Division I championship meet, the Bears’ best showing since 1986. A public health major with a 3.75 GPA, he was also a member of the NCAA champion 200-free, 400-free and 400-medley relay teams. The Bremerton, Wash. native was the 2010 Pacific-10 Conference champion in five events and earned first team PAC-10 All-Academic honors. A member of the U.S. National Team, Adrian won a Gold Medal at the 2008 Olympics as a member of the United States 400-free relay team.
An aerospace engineering major with a perfect 4.00 GPA.,
Buck led Navy to a 13-1 record as a senior and the Mids’ seventh consecutive Patriot League swimming and diving championship. A second team All-Patriot League selection as a junior, he was the Patriot League Rookie of the Year in 2008. A member of Navy’s Patriot League champion 200-free relay team this season, Buck also finished fifth in the 50-free and seventh in the 100-free. The Patriot League runner-up in the 100-free as a freshman, the Lisle, Ill. native was selected as a USNA Trident Scholar for independent study and research.
A sociology major carrying a 3.46 GPA,
Metcalf won two NCAA championships in the 149-pound weight class in his career for Iowa. As a senior, he was the national runner-up at 149 pounds, helping the Hawkeyes win the NCAA wrestling team championship. A three-time All-American, he also won two Big Ten Conference titles at 149 pounds. The three-time Academic All-Big Ten pick compiled a 108-3 record in his career, the second best mark in Iowa history. A native of Davidson, Mich., Metcalf had a 69-match winning streak and posted 47 career pins. A 2010 Big Ten Conference Medal of Honor winner, he was undefeated in his career in Big Ten matches. As a sophomore, he was named as the Outstanding Wrestler of the NCAA Meet and he won the Jesse Owens Award as the Big Ten’s Male Athlete of the Year.
A human evolutionary biology with a 3.44 GPA,
O'Connor won the 2010 NCAA wrestling title at the 157-pound weight class after posting a perfect 35-0 record. A three-time All-American who compiled a record of 132-16 record in his career, he tied the Harvard record for most career victories and was named as the EIWA Wrestler of the Year. A finalist for the Hodge Trophy, awarded to the Outstanding College Wrestler of the Year, the Oxford, N.Y. native was named as the Ivy League Wrestler of the Year twice. Only the second three-time All-American at Harvard, O'Connor is Harvard’s only undefeated NCAA champion.
A business administration major with a 3.98 GPA,
Knelson was the leading scorer for the Alaska-Fairbanks ice hockey team this season as he led the Nanooks to an 18-12-9 record and their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. Named as a Lowe's Senior CLASS First-Team All-American and the CCHA Scholar-Athlete of the Year, he scored 19 goals with 24 assists as a senior. A native of Three Hill, Alberta, Canada, Knelson was the Nanooks’ leading scorer for the last three seasons and finished his career with 42 goals and 67 assists, 17th on the Nanooks’ all-time scoring list.
A systems engineering major with a perfect 4.00 GPA who graduated 26th in his class,
Maisano led Army’s lacrosse team to an 11-6 record, the Patriot League championship and an upset win over second-ranked Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament. A two-year starter at midfield, he was the senior captain of the Knights and was honored as the Patriot League’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men’s lacrosse. The winner of the Lowe’s Senior CLASS award for men’s lacrosse, he scored three goals with five assists as a senior. A member of the Tau Beta Pi Engineering and Gold Key honor societies, the Lakeview, N.Y. native is a member of the Brigade Chain of Command and completed Airborne School last summer. Maisano is currently working on a research and design project for the Federal Aviation Administration.
A business and finance major with a 3.79 GPA,
Gelso won the NCAA individual skiing championship in the classical discipline as a senior, becoming only the second American-born skier to win the title. A five-time All-American in his career, he led the Colorado ski team to a second place finish at the NCAA Division I championship as a senior. Gelso also finished third in the freestyle race and finished his career with 22 top three appearances, tied for fourth in school history. A native of Truckee, Cal., he won seven races in his career and was awarded the Big 12 Conference Medal for Colorado, presented to the senior male student-athlete with the highest GPA.
College Division Academic All-America® Men's At-Large TeamsOn the 17-member ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large College Division first team, there are six swimmers, four tennis players and four wrestlers. Three members of the team have 4.00 GPA’s while the first team honorees have an outstanding 3.89 average GPA.
Laurent is one of three repeat first team selections on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large College Division first team.
Senior swimmers Alex Beyer of Washington (Mo.) and
David Gatz of Ohio Wesleyan were also named to the first team last year.
Senior lacrosse standout Timothy Kurpis of Gettysburg was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large College Division second team last year before ascending to the first team in 2010.
Senior golfer Collin Mayer (St. Edward’s) and
senior lacrosse player Ryan Story (Wooster) were named to the Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large College Division third team last year before moving up to the first team this season.
Senior swimmers Andrew McCall of Truman State, Sean McGraw (Ashland) and
Jeffrey Zhou (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) were joined on the 2010 Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large College Division first team by j
unior swimmer Kellen Beckwith of Olivet.
Senior wrestlers Tyler Burkle of Coe and
Joshua Wake of Oneonta State were also named to the Academic All-America® Men’s At-Large College Division first team, along with
junior wrestler Luke Miller of Ohio Northern.
A quartet of tennis players, including
senior Lorenzo Cava (Bentley), senior Ryan Dunn (Lawrence), senior Christoph Fuchs (Whitman) and
junior Isaac Stein of Washington (Mo.), complete the All-America® Men’s At-Large College Division first team.
Washington (Mo.) was the only school with more than one selection to the first team.
The NCAA Division III national champion in the 400 IM (individual medley) with a time of 3:52.94,
Beyer was a seven-time All-American in 2010. A biology major with a 3.75 GPA, he set the NCAA record in the 400-I.M. as a junior. A 22-time All-American in his career at Washington (Mo.), Beyer led the Bears to a tenth place finish at the national championship meet as a senior. The owner of eight school records, the Seattle, Wash. native is the recipient of an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. He will attend medical school in the fall of 2010.
A five-time All-American in the 100- and 200-breaststroke,
Gatz is a pre-med, biochemistry and zoology major who carries a 3.89 GPA. A two-time North Coast Athletic Conference champion in the 100- and 200-breaststroke, Gatz is the two-time winner of Ohio Wesleyan’s Presidential Award, recognizing the University’s top athlete and person. A six-time all-conference selection, he was named as the team’s Most Valuable Performer three times. A member of Phi Beta Kappa, the Delaware, Ohio native was recently awarded an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.
An economics major with a 4.04 GPA,
Kurpis anchored the defense for Gettysburg’s fourth-ranked lacrosse team and led the Bullets to a 15-3 record and a berth in the NCAA semi-finals. A USILA All-America first team selection, he led Gettysburg to the Centennial Conference championship and was named first team all-conference for the second year in a row. A three-year starter on defense, the Yorktown, N.Y. owns the highest GPA of any Gettysburg student-athlete.
A business finance major with a perfect 4.0 GPA,
Mayer earned honorable mention All-American honors from PING/GCAA after competing in all 12 events for the Hilltoppers. He finished the season with a 73.2 scoring average and had two tournament wins, three top-five finishes and six top-10 finishes. Mayer broke the school record for lowest round, firing a 64 at the Rollins College Invitational. A native of Houston, Tex., Mayer was named as the Heartland Conference Player of the Year and earned first-team all-league honors.
A three-time All-North Coast Athletic Conference defenseman for the Wooster lacrosse team,
Story was a top performer for a defense that ranked third in the league and among the NCAA leaders. A biochemistry and molecular biology major with a 3.98 GPA, he was awarded the Lockhart Outstanding Senior Award, Wooster's top recognition, and spoke on behalf of the Class of 2010 at commencement. The Pittsburgh, Pa. native received the John W. Chittum Prize in organic chemistry and the John Gardner Weeks scholarship for seniors planning a career in medicine.
A Rhodes Scholar,
McCall is a philosophy and religion major with a 3.93 GPA. A three-time All-American swimmer at Truman State, the St. Louis, Mo. native is the first Rhodes Scholar in school history. Honored as the Truman State Male Student-Athlete of the Year, he is a talented musician who also plays in the University Orchestra.
A physics and mathematics major who registers a 3.83 GPA, McGraw is an 11-time All-American at Ashland. A member of three relay teams that finished in the top 10 at nationals, he helped the 200-medley relay team finish second. A key member of the 2009 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference champion 200-free relay team, McGraw earned the 2009 Commissioner's Award for outstanding academics and athletics. The Mansfield, Ohio, native was named as Ashland University’s Outstanding Student of the Year in Mathematics and Physics three times.
A chemical engineering major with a 3.84 GPA,
Zhou earned four All-America honors as a senior at MIT, enabling him to finish his career with seven All-America awards. A three-time All-NEWMAC swimmer as a senior, the Buffalo, N.Y. native earned 14 all-conference awards in his career. A member of three NEWMAC record-setting relay teams, Zhou holds the MIT record for the backstroke split-time (23.10) which he set at the 2010 NCAA Championship. A three-time NEWMAC Academic All-Conference selection, he is a member of the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society.
A two-time All-American in the 100-backstroke,
Beckwith is a mathematics major holding a perfect 4.00 GPA. The Olivet College school record holder in the 100-backstroke and the 200-backstroke, he is a three-time All-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association selection. A member of the record-setting 200 and 400 freestyle and medley relay teams, the Farmington Hill, Mich. native received the NCAA Elite 88 award for men's swimming and diving and is a three-time member of the MIAA Academic Honor Roll.
A business administration major with a 3.90 GPA,
Burkle finished third at the NCAA Wrestling Championship Meet in the 184-pound weight class for Coe, earning his third straight All-American honor. He set a school record with 37 victories as a senior while also breaking the school record with 27 career major decisions. A native of Coggon, Iowa, Burkle won the Iowa Conference title in his weight class in 2008 and 2010 and finished his career with a 125-18 record.
An accounting major carrying a 3.82 GPA,
Wake earned All-American honors after finishing sixth in the 184-pound weight class at the NCAA Division III Championship Meet. He finished his career ranked second all-time at Oneonta State with 129 victories. A native of Delhi, N.Y., Wake was named an NWCA Scholar All-American honors for the third time in his career and received the Dr. Sam Molnar Award as the top male student-athlete in the SUNYAC.
The 2010 NCAA Division III wrestling champion at 157 pounds,
Miller earned his second straight All-American award for Ohio Northern. A civil engineering major with a 3.93 GPA, he won the Ohio Athletic Conference Championship in his weight class, leading the squad to a third-place finish at the league championships. Named as the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the 2009 OAC Championship, the Indiana, Pa. native was named as the OAC Wrestler of the Week twice this season.
A native of Quito, Ecuador,
Cava led the Bentley tennis team to the 2010 Northeast-10 Conference championship and a berth in the NCAA Division II Championship. A management major with a 3.53 GPA, he was named as the NE-10 Men's Tennis Player of the Year and received the 2010 Division II Arthur Ashe Jr. Award after compiling a 26-1 singles record and 18-5 mark in doubles action. A three-time All-American at Lynn University prior to transferring to Bentley, Cava was the NE-10 Player of the Week seven times.
A biology major with a 3.86 GPA,
Dunn led the Lawrence tennis team to its first Midwest Conference North Division championship since 1993. By posting a 20-3 singles record in 2010, Dunn completed an impressive career with a 57-12 record, setting the Lawrence record for career victories. After winning the No. 1 singles title in the conference in 2009, he was runner-up as a senior. A native of Fond du Lac, Wis., he teamed with his brother, Jason, to compile a 20-3 mark at number one doubles in 2010.
Fuchs, a biology major with a 3.87 GPA, led the Whitman tennis team to a 16-0 record in the Northwest Conference record and third straight NWC title. A key player for Whitman in his career, Fuchs helped the Whits post a 64-0 record in the NWC regular season the past four years, including four trips to the NCAA Division III nationals. A native of La Center, Wash., Fuchs will attend Baylor College of Medicine, one of the most prestigious medical schools in the nation.
A biology major holding a 3.97 GPA,
Stein was named an NCAA Elite 88 recipient for tennis and was ranked third in NCAA Division III doubles. He led Washington (Mo.) to the NCAA semifinals while also qualifying for the NCAA individual singles and doubles championships. Stein earned All-American honors for the first time in his career after placing fifth in doubles at the ITA Small College National Championship in October. A native of Kalamazoo, Mich., he is a two-time All-University Athletic Association selection. While posting a 15-11 record as a singles player in 2010, he helped the Bears reach the NCAA semi-finals.
The CoSIDA ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America® Program
To be eligible for Academic All-America® consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative GPA (grade point average) of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director.
Since the program’s inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 15,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.
ESPN The Magazine - winner of the 2006 and 2003 National Magazine Award for General Excellence - is a provocative and innovative sports publication. Full of insight, analysis, impact and wit, the oversized biweekly with a circulation of 1.9 million looks ahead to give fans a unique perspective on the world of sports.
For more information about the Academic All-America® Teams program, please visit
www.cosida.com/Awards/allamerica.aspx.
For more information, contact:
Dan O’Connell, Towson University
Academic All-America ® Vice-Chair For Publicity/Communications
email: doconnell@towson.edu
phone: (410) 704-3102
Mandi Copeland, College of Charleston
Academic All-America ® Coordinator of Publicity
email: CopelandA@cofc.edu
phone: (843) 953-5287