SEWARD, Neb. – Concordia University athletic teams again finished near the top of NAIA institutions across the nation for total number of 2016-17 NAIA Scholar-Teams. A year after sharing the national lead for Scholar-Teams, Concordia placed second among all NAIA institutions with 19 Scholar-Teams, as announced by the NAIA on Tuesday (July 18).
For a team to be considered for the NAIA Scholar-Team award, it must have a minimum 3.0 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) as defined by the institution. The team grade point average includes all eligible varsity student-athletes.
Of the 19 Concordia Scholar-Teams, nine of them ranked among the 10 (in terms of GPA) in the NAIA when compared to their respective sports. Head coach Mandi Maser’s cheer and dance teams placed third nationally with a collective GPA of 3.43. Head coach Ryan Dupic’s baseball program (3.33) and head coach Andrew Nicola’s wrestling program (3.09) both finished inside the top five in comparison to their competition.
Concordia University also boasts the most all-time NAIA Scholar-Athletes of any institution in the nation. Concordia now has 1,284 all-time NAIA Scholar-Athletes, including 78 for the 2016-17 academic year. In addition, seven Bulldog student-athletes garnered CoSIDA Academic All-District accolades this past season. Five of the seven were also named to CoSIDA Academic All-America teams.
2016-17 Concordia NAIA Scholar-Teams
*(National sport rank in parentheses if in top 15)
Baseball – 3.33 (T-4th)
Cheer & Dance – 3.43 (3rd)
Men’s Basketball – 3.41 (8th)
Women’s Basketball – 3.61 (T-11th)
Men’s Cross Country – 3.35
Men’s Golf – 3.57 (T-8th)
Men’s Indoor Track & Field – 3.19
Men’s Outdoor Track & Field – 3.18
Men’s Soccer – 3.23
Men’s Tennis – 3.35 (T-13th)
Softball – 3.39
Women’s Cross Country – 3.74 (T-7th)
Women’s Golf – 3.59
Women’s Indoor Track & Field – 3.63 (7th)
Women’s Outdoor Track & Field – 3.63 (7th)
Women’s Soccer – 3.45
Women’s Tennis – 3.48
Volleyball – 3.69 (T-7th)
Wrestling – 3.09 (4th)