May 27, 2018
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference recently announced the spring honorees of the HCAC All-Academic awards for the 2018 school year. Twenty-three Bluffton University athletes were recognized for their efforts in the classroom.
Seniors Brittany Huff (Clayton/Northmont), Makenzie Schmidt (Caledonia/River Valley), Nicole Thomas (Tontogany/Otsego), Mercedes Burns (Ashtabula) and Chelsea Zoltowski (Sylvania/Southview) all took care of business in the books as well as on the field. It marked the third straight Academic All-HCAC honor for Huff, Schmidt, Thomas and Zoltowski. Juniors Kelsey Reeder (Galion/Northmor) and Casey Clark (Lima/Central Catholic) were joined by sophomores Courtney Jasinski (Englewood/Northmont) and Caylin Morstadt (Delaware/Rutherford B. Hayes) who were able to bring home academic honors in her first year of eligibility.
This year baseball had four members receive Academic All-Conference honors. Seniors Paul Frey (Kirby/Riverdale) and Ryan Golden (Findlay) earned their third straight HCAC All-Academic honor in three years of eligibility. Baseball had a junior recognized for the second straight year in Jordan Stutzman (Millersburg/West Holmes) while sophomore Parker Reynolds (Avon) collected his first Academic All-Academic honor.
AlisSa Hauke (Hillsboro) was recognized for the third straight year while fellow senior Kris Lyons (Vickery/Margaretta) earned his first Academic All-HCAC honor. Juniors Maelinn Delong (Archbold/Bryan), Sarah Oliver (Lexington) and Jonah Eckert (Terre Haute, Ind./West Vigo) were all recognized for the second time while junior Michael Lehman (West Liberty/West Liberty-Salem) and sophomores Dakota Frost (Edgerton/Hicksville), Tori Bowen (Wapakoneta/Elida) and Alexis Cash (Gaines, MI/Lake Fenton) all notched their first honors.
To be named All-Academic HCAC, a student-athlete must have completed a full year at the institution, be a varsity athlete and carry a minimum cumulative grade point average of at least 3.50 through the semester preceding the end of the season.
Bluffton University is a liberal arts residential campus with 39 undergraduate programs, adult degree completion programs in organizational management and human resource management and master's degree programs in education, organizational management and business administration. Founded in 1899 and affiliated with Mennonite Church USA, Bluffton is located in northwest Ohio. The institution has a growing enrollment of more than 1,100 students and 16 NCAA Division III athletics teams. Bluffton's hundred-year legacy is expressed today in its enduring values of discovery, community, respect and service that are woven into the academic program and campus life. Bluffton students go into the world prepared for life as well as for their chosen vocation.
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