Davidson Wrestling Posts Top-10 GPA to Earn NWCA All-Academic Team Honor
MANHEIM, Pa. - The Davidson wrestling team made the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Division I All-Academic Top 30 Team list for sixth time in the past seven years, ranking 10th in the nation in team grade point average for the 2011-12 season, the NWCA announced Tuesday.
Davidson boasted a team GPA of 3.1669. Chattanooga (13th, 3.1476) and Appalachian State (21st, 3.0678) also represented the Southern Conference on the list. The Wildcats were ranked 25th in 2006, 11th in both 2007 and 2008, and moved up to fifth in both 2009 and 2010.
The Nebraska Cornhuskers had a team GPA of a 3.46 to take home top honors for the first time in the history of the program. The 3.46 GPA is also the third highest ever for a team. Last year's team champion Harvard University, finished a close second with a 3.37 GPA. Finishing out the Top 10 Teams are: American, Utah Valley, Indiana, Stanford, Princeton, Brown, Lehigh, and Davidson.
Four of the top five teams from this year's NCAA Division I Championships were recognized in the top 30 teams, which includes team champion Penn State, Minnesota, Cornell and Ohio State.
For teams to be eligible for consideration, the team GPA is comprised of 12 student athletes, including the 10 wrestlers that were the entries in the NCAA tournament conference qualifier. If teams had less than 10 entries for their respective qualifier, they may fill those spots with wrestlers that competed in at least one varsity dual during the season.
"The NWCA All-Academic Team and Individual Team is one of the best acknowledgements that we can give to our coaches and athletes at the end of a physically grueling season. These 87 young men have proved that they are not only talented competitors but are leaders in the classroom as well. The NWCA Board of Directors and staff look forward to watching these student-athletes continue their success at the collegiate level and eventually as the leaders of the future once they earn their college degrees," said Mike Moyer, NWCA Executive Director.
The National Wrestling Coaches Association, established in 1928, is a non-profit organization for the advancement of all levels of the sport of wrestling with primary emphasis on developing coaches who work in academic environments.
Mocs Wrestlers Rank 13th in the Nation in Team G.P.A.
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling team recorded the nation's 13th highest grade-point-average for the 2011-12 season the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) announced today. The Mocs posted a 3.15 g.p.a. among its starters and top reserve in the just concluded academic year.
Senior Brandon Wright (Germantown, Tenn.) and juniorDean Pavlou (Cleveland, Tenn.) were both honored for their individual work, earning a spot on the NWCA All-Academic Division I Team. Wright recently graduated with a Business degree and a 3.33 g.p.a. A two-time Southern Conference Champion, he is now a three-time Academic All-NWCA honoree.
Pavlou also earns his third Academic All-NWCA team recognition. He has a 3.65 g.p.a. as an Exercise Science major and is a two-time SoCon Champion. To qualify for the All-Academic team a wrestler must have at least a 3.2 cumulative grade-point-average, be an NCAA qualifier or win 60 percent of his total schedule and compete in at least 60 percent of said schedule. The other way to qualify for the All-Academic team is to have a 3.0 g.p.a. and be an NCAA All-American.
UTC raised its team g.p.a. slightly from last year's 3.14, but tough competition among the Division I programs dropped the Mocs from seventh to 13th. Each year, the NWCA recognizes the top-30 programs in the nation based on g.p.a. This is the fourth year in school history the Mocs have been listed, including 1998 and 1999.
The wrestlers were one of five Chattanooga teams to rank in the top-25 in the nation in their respective sport in g.p.a. last season, joining men's track & field (5th), men's cross country (15th), women's golf (22nd) and women's cross country. Both of the Mocs cross country teams have already made the top-25 this year with the men leading the nation and the women placing fifth.
Appalachian State's Kostis Earns NWCA All-Academic Honors
MANHEIM, Pa. - Appalachian State University wrestling has been honored by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) as a Division I All-Academic Team for the 2011-12 wrestling season. In addition, senior Savva Kostis (Boone, N.C./Watauga) was selected to the NWCA's Individual All-Academic team, as announced by the association on Tuesday.
Mirroring the Mountaineers' finish in the 2012 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, Appalachian State's GPA ranked 21st in the nation (3.0678), five spots higher than national champion Penn State. ASU's selection to the national top 30 is its second in as many seasons and third overall, having taken its first honors in 1997.
The NWCA also released its Individual All-Academic team, in which Kostis joined 86 others recognized as the country's elite grapplers based on academic and athletic performance. Kostis becomes Appalachian's second All-Academic honoree, joining Dylan Temple, who was honored in 2009-10.
For ranking purposes, the team GPA is comprised of 12 student-athletes, including the 10 wrestlers that were entries in the NCAA tournament conference qualifier.
To qualify for the Individual All-Academic team, a wrestler must have at least a 3.2 cumulative GPA and be an NCAA qualifier or win 60 percent of his total schedule. Wrestlers also qualify with a 3.0 GPA and NCAA all-America honors (top eight at the NCAA championship).
Davidson and Chattanooga also represented the Southern Conference in the team GPA rankings, while Kostis was one of only three SoCon grapplers to be represented individually, joining a pair of Mocs.