UMAC hands out 326 fall academic all-conference awards
ST. PAUL -- The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) shattered the 300 mark for individual academic all-conference awards for the third consecutive year in the fall of 2011. 326 student-athletes representing 13 institutions in seven sports received recognition for an award that requires a 3.5 or better grade point average in the respective semester of competition.
Both the fall semesters of 2009 and 2010 also had 300 or more individual accolades. 2010 set a record with 359 academic all-conference awards, while the 355 in 2009 was a record at the time as well. For the third straight year, the College of St. Scholastica boasted the highest number of UMAC fall individual achievements, as the Saints led all schools with 69 awards in 2011. Three institutions, which were within five accolades of one another, followed. The University of Minnesota Morris took second with 49 awards, followed by Martin Luther College and Northwestern College, who each had 44 recipients.
Football held on to the top spot for having the most academic all-conference awards, claiming 92 of the 326 certificates. Women’s cross country and women’s soccer followed in second and third places with 58 and 51 awards. Men’s cross country took fourth place with 41 awards, while volleyball rounded out the top five with 37.
Click here to view the full listing of UMAC Individual Academic All-Conference award winners.
In the team competition, Martin Luther College claimed the best grade point averages in more than half of the sports including football, men’s golf, men’s soccer and volleyball. Crown College, Northland College and Northwestern College each took one of the team sport competitions.
UMAC-sponsored sports whose championship season is solely in the fall semester and their respective top academic teams are listed below.
| Sport |
School |
Team GPA |
| Men's Cross Country |
Northwestern College |
3.507 |
| Women's Cross Country |
Northland College |
3.680 |
| Football |
Martin Luther College |
2.881 |
| Men's Golf |
Martin Luther College |
3.239 |
| Men's Soccer |
Martin Luther College |
3.050 |
| Women's Soccer |
Crown College |
3.262 |
| Volleyball |
Martin Luther College |
3.503 |