March 16, 2004
The University of Notre Dame men’s swimming and diving team posted a 3.050 team grade-point average in the fall 2003 semester to be tied for 24th among Division I teams. The Irish were named an Academic All-American Team for the semester by the Collegiate Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) on Monday.
Notre Dame’s was one of 53 Division I men’s swimming and diving programs to earn the honor. All squads with a GPA of 2.800 or higher were recognized, including seven from the BIG EAST Conference. Other league winners were Georgetown (3.284, T-13th in BIG EAST Championships), St. John’s (3.190, 6th), Boston College (3.176, 10th), Syracuse (3.098, 5th), Seton Hall (2.992, 9th), and Miami (2.931, 12th).
In addition, five teams on Notre Dame’s dual-meet schedule earned the award: Brigham Young (3.260), Northwestern (2.890), Wyoming (2.865), Oakland (2.829), and Iowa (2.810).
The University of Denver led all Division I teams with a cumulative GPA of 3.578, while second-place Duke had a 3.326.
With the Irish women’s swimming and diving team also an Academic All-American Team, finishing 37th with a team GPA of 3.247, Notre Dame was one of 17 instititutions to have its men’s team in the top 25 and its women’s team finish among the top 40.
Notre Dame had six student-athletes named to the Dean’s List in the fall of 2003. Leading the way was sophomore Patrick Davis (Clearwater, Fla./Jesuit H.S.), a computer science major in the College of Engineering, who had a grade-point average of 3.941 to bring his cumulative mark to 3.713. After boasting a 4.000 GPA in the spring of 2003, senior history major Brian Coughlan (Moraga, Calif./Campolindo H.S.) carded a 3.917 last fall, bringing his team-leading cumulative GPA to 3.760. Senior political science major Josh Dermott (El Dorado Hills, Calif./Rio Americano H.S.) is right behind his classmate with cumulative average of 3.755 following a 3.833 GPA in the fall of ’03.
Sophomore business major Patrick O’Berry (Alpharetta, Ga./Milton H.S.) carded a 3.938 GPA, while senior accounting major Matt Obringer (Jacksonville, Fla./The Bolles School) had a 3.445. David Hochstetler (Bremen, Ind./Bremen Senior H.S.) had a 3.824 in his first collegiate semester to be the lone freshman garnering Dean’s List mention.
Three other Irish student-athletes had GPAs over 3.500 last fall. Junior marketing and design double major David Moisan (Fisherville, Ky./Louisville Male H.S.) registered a 3.533, while freshmen Ted Brown (Kokomo, Ind./Western H.S.) and Tim Kegelman (Yorktown, Va./Tabb H.S.) notched a 3.588 and 3.510, respectively.
Notre Dame has a long history of academic excellence, finishing among the nation’s top 20 in team GPA on 10 occasions since 1990. In the spring of 1999, the Irish led Division I with a 3.352 GPA.
Notre Dame went 8-7 in dual meets in 2003-04 before finishing second in the BIG EAST Championships, highlighted by nine top-three finishes and the highest point total in school history. The Irish also set University records in eight different events.