Academic Team Release | Academic Squad Release
 
GILBERT, Ariz. – The National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) began announcing its academic achievement award program in a series of publications over the past week. Ithaca College once-again was listed prominently among its Division III peers, earning the Academic Team Award, while 19 of the program's student-athletes received recognition on the NFHCA Academic Squad in a subsequent release earlier this week.
 
The first announcement from the NFHCA was the presentation of its 2019 Academic Team Award.  IC has been no stranger to this academic honor, as the program has annually received this praise since the expansion of the NFHCA's academic awards program. The NFHCA Academic Team Award recognizes program that achieved a minimum cumulative team grade-point average of 3.0 during the fall semester of the 2019-20 academic year.
 
The Liberty League was quite prominent in the announcement. All eight Liberty League field hockey affiliates were tabbed with the team award this season. In total, 147 programs around the country took home the honor for 2019. The total number was 16-team increase over the past year, representing a new high number for the Association.
 
The next announcement by the NFHCA was the presentation of the 2019 Zag Field Hockey Academic Squad, which was unveiled on March 12. Impressively, 19 members of Ithaca's program achieved the award, headlined by senior keeper Savanna Lenker who was distinguished as a four-year honoree in the release. IC's honoree group included: Macy Brandwein, Amberly Christiansen, Arla Davis, Katie Dick, Allison Egan, Kyra Feick, Samantha Horowitz, Savanna Lenker, Molly Malone, Natalie Milliken, Jacqueline Mirabile, Morgan Mullen, Anna Parrish, Elizabeth Pillow, Kristen Rafferty, Maya Rodgers, Arleigh Rodgers, Jessica Scopellite, and Grace Ziehnert.
 
In order to be recognized for the National Academic Squad, a student-athlete must have achieved a cumulative grade-point average of 3.30-or-higher during their collegiate career extending through the 2019 fall semester. In total, 1,943 Division III student-athletes encompassing 157 different institutions earned recognition in the release. The numbers were record highs for the NFHCA, smashing last year's numbers by nearly 200 more student-athletes and 10 more institutions represented. Ithaca's 19 total selections ranked near the Top-10, as Wesleyan (Conn.) paced all programs with 25 National Academic Squad selections, while Johns Hopkins and Williams finished in a tie for second with 24 each. The Bombers had the most honorees among Liberty League programs, outpacing closest rivals Vassar and Skidmore who finished with 17 and 16 total, respectively.
 
The next award to be announced by the NFHCA is its annual Scholars of Distinction, which is currently scheduled to be published on March 25.