For the third consecutive year, Ā鶹¾«Ń” was tops among nine Mid-American Conference (MAC) institutions with eight student-athletes on the 2017 Academic All-MAC Wrestling Team.
Redshirt juniors Stephen Suglio, of Richfield, Ohio, and Chance Driscoll, Aurora, Ohio, were among just five conference wrestlers to earn the honor for a third time. The Golden Flashes are also the only team with a pair of three-time recipients.
āIām really proud of our guys and how seriously they take their studies,ā says wresting head coach Jim Andrassy. āThey are here to get a degree, and weāre going to continue to recruit good students. I couldnāt be happier with our academic staff and the priority our athletic department puts on academics.ā
Suglio, an integrated science major, carries a 3.7 grade point average. He won 20 matches this season and led the Golden Flashes with 13 bonus-point victories. Driscoll carries a 3.6 GPA as an economics major. He won 21 matches on the year, going 10-6 in dual meets.
Redshirt sophomores Devin Nye, of Springfield, Ohio, and Anthony Tutolo, of Concord, Ohio, each earned their second straight academic all-conference recognition. Junior Jerald Spohn, of New Lexington, Ohio, sophomore Isaac Bast, of Massillon, Ohio, redshirt freshmen Tim Rooney, of Columbus, Ohio, and Jared Walker, of South Fayette, Pennsylvania, all earned first-time spots.
Despite being hampered by an injury, Tutolo won 19 matches and earned at automatic qualifying spot to the NCAA Championships. He carries a 3.6 GPA as a communications major. Nye and Rooney both have experienced success in the classroom with 3.8 GPAs.
The Academic All-MAC honor is for a student-athlete who has excelled in athletics and academics. To qualify, a student must have at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average and have participated in at least 50 percent of the contests for that particular sport. First-year students and junior college transfers in their first year of residence are not eligible for the award.
A select group of MAC Distinguished Scholar Athletes will be chosen from the Academic All-MAC Team and announced at later date.