4/29/2010 - WOMEN'S SOCCER Preble and Pletta named NSIC Honor Student-Athletes

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ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference today announced its 2010 Honor Student-Athlete and Scholarship award winners, naming Bemidji State University’s Zach Preble (Sr., Multi, Coleraine, Minn.) and Maddie Pletta (Sr., D, Rochester, Minn.) to the list of 26 recipients.

The league also announced Winona State University football standout Marcus Greatens as the 2010 Dr. William Britton Scholar-Athlete Award for Academic Excellence winner and WSU volleyball and track and field athlete Lauren Brown as the 2010 Willis R. Kelly Scholar-Athlete Award for Academic Excellence.

The Britton Scholar-Athlete Award for Academic Excellence, is in its 26th year and recognizes the NSIC’s top male student-athlete, while the Kelly Scholar-Athlete Award, in its 25th year, is presented to the NSIC’s top female student-athlete.

Preble is a 2010 Academic All-NSIC and USTFCCCA All-Academic team member. He is a two-time All-America performer, earning eight NSIC titles in the heptathlon (4) and decathlon (4). Pletta is a three-time NSIC All-Academic member. In her senior campaign, Pletta anchored a defensive corps that posted a team 0.860 goals against average that ranked fifth in the conference and 47th in the nation. Offensively, she added a career-high three assists, tying her career-high in points (3).
 
The Britton Award was created in 1985 in honor of Dr. William Britton, a longtime faculty representative at Bemidji State University. The Kelly Award is named in honor of Willis R. Kelly, an associate professor of physical education at the University of Minnesota, Morris. A member of the NSIC Hall of Fame, Kelly also coordinated the Minnesota-Morris Physical Education Department from 1970-87. She became the first director of women’s intercollegiate athletics at Minnesota-Morris in 1976 and was later promoted to athletic director for the whole department. Kelly passed away in 1988.

The member institutions of the NSIC nominate one male and one female student-athlete for the Britton and Kelly Awards. The nominees must meet the following criteria: a grade point average of 3.20 or better (on a 4.0 scale); evidence of academic excellence beyond the minimum grade point average (scholarship prizes and other academic recognition), evidence of participation in the life of the institution, and evidence of participation in at least two-thirds of the varsity events of the individual’s primary sport. The award is voted on by the NSIC Faculty Athletic Representatives.

The 26 student-athletes nominated for the NSIC’s two most prestigious awards will also be honored as NSIC Male and Female Honor Student-Athletes of the Year at their respective institutions. Greatens and Brown will be recognized Wednesday, July 14 at the 2010 NSIC Hall of Fame Banquet at the Best Western Kelly Inn and Convention Center in St. Cloud, Minn. Greatens and Brown will each receive a $2,500 post-graduate scholarship.

2009-10 NSIC Men’s Honor Student-Athlete Award Winners
Name     Institution     Year     Sport     Hometown
Austin Vande Berg     Augustana College     Sr.     Cross Country     Sioux Falls, S.D.
Zachary Preble     Bemidji State University     Sr.     Track & Field     Coleraine, Minn.
John Pimental     Concordia University- St. Paul     Sr.     Track & Field     Ripon, Wis.
Andrew Leer     University of Mary     Sr.     Baseball     Williston, ND
Tobias Lemke     University of Minnesota Duluth     Sr.     Football     Essen, Germany
Michael Robinson     Minnesota State University, Mankato     Jr.     Football     Wausau, Wis.
Harrison Dotson     Minnesota State University Moorhead     Sr.     Football     Long Prairie, Minn.
Cody Hagamen     Northern State     Sr.     Track & Field     Hoven, S.D.
Kevin Andrews     Southwest Minnesota State University     Sr.     Basketball     Marion, Iowa
David Deminsky     St. Cloud State University     Sr.     Baseball     Sartell, Minn.
Matthew Lesan     Upper Iowa University     Jr.     Basketball     Solon, Iowa
Brian J. Metz     Wayne State College     Sr.     Basketball     Keswick, Iowa
Marcus Greatens     Winona State University     Sr.     Football     Oneida, Wis.

2009-10 NSIC Women’s Honor Student-Athlete Award Winners
Ellen A. Andrews     Augustana College     Sr.     Volleyball     Bancroft, Neb.
Madeline Pletta     Bemidji State University     Sr.     Soccer     Rochester, Minn.
Maggie McNamara     Concordia University-St. Paul     Sr.     Volleyball     Zumbrota, Minn
Elizabeth Sipma     University of Mary     Sr.     Basketball     Dickinson, ND
Becky Anderson     University of Minnesota Duluth     Jr.     Soccer     Duluth, Minn.
Elizabeth Trauger     Minnesota State University, Mankato     Sr.     Basketball     Livermore, Iowa
Allson Nash-Gerlach     Minnesota State University Moorhead     Sr.     Basketball     Roseville, Minn.
Kayla Ysteboe     Northern State     Sr.     Volleyball     Grand Forks, ND
Danielle Hildebrandt     Southwest Minnesota State University     Sr.     Tennis     St. James, Minn.
Heather Miller     St. Cloud State University     Sr.     Track & Field     Columbus Wis.
Paige Devine     Upper Iowa University     Sr.     Basketball     St. Charles, Minnesota
Jennifer Hefner     Wayne State College     Jr.     Volleyball     Archer, Neb.
Lauren Brown     Winona State University     Sr.     Volleyball/Track & Field     Madison, Wis.

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