Senior track & field star Molly Seidel earned her second ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year award on Wednesday.

Seidel, McGrath Headline Irish All-ACC Academic Team Picks

April 27, 2016

By Joanne Norell

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Thirty-two University of Notre Dame winter sport student-athletes have been named to their respective All-Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Teams this week, with two Irish representatives coming away with the league’s top academic recognition.

The All-Academic Teams for men’s and women’s indoor track & field, men’s and women’s fencing, and men’s and women’s swimming & diving were announced this week. Women’s track & field senior Molly Seidel and men’s fencing senior Garrett McGrath were named the ACC Scholar-Athletes of the Year for their respective sports. It is Seidel’s second Scholar-Athlete of the Year recognition this year, having been awarded the honor for the cross country season. McGrath is the second straight Notre Dame men’s fencer to earn the award.

Related Links:
Seidel Earns Second ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award
McGrath Named ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year

The track & field program boasted 15 All-ACC Academic Indoor Team honorees, with seven women and eight men tabbed for recognition. Seven track student-athletes – seniors Danielle Aragon, Margaret Bamgbose, Mary-Esther Gourdin, Seidel and Brent Swanberg, junior Jacob Dumford and sophomore Jessica Harris – are all multi-time All-ACC Academic Team members, with Seidel owning three such honors.

Ten fencing student-athletes made the cut, with three women and seven men earning All-ACC Academic recognition. Seniors McGrath and John Hallsten, and sophomores Claudia Kulmacz, Jonah Shainberg and Virgile Collineau are returning all-academic team members.

Finally, seven members of the men’s and women’s swimming & diving teams, with two women and five men named to their respective squads. Senior Emma Gaboury is the lone multi-year honoree, making her second All-ACC Academic roster.

To make the All-ACC Academic Team, a student-athlete must own a 3.0 GPA for the previous semester and a 3.0 cumulative GPA during his or her academic career. Athletic achievements during the most recent season are also considered.

In July, the conference will release its ACC Honor Roll, which recognizes all conference student-athletes with a GPA of 3.0 for the current academic year.

2015-16 All-ACC Academic Women’s Indoor Track & Field Team
Danielle Aragon, Sr., Science-Business @
Margaret Bamgbose, Sr., Information Technology Management @
Jessica Harris, So., Undeclared @
Mary-Esther Gourdin, Sr., American Studies @
Jamie Marvil, Jr., Accountancy
Molly Seidel, Sr., Anthropology @
Jordan Shead, So., Classics

2016 ACC Indoor Track & Field Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Molly Seidel

2015-16 All-ACC Academic Men’s Indoor Track & Field Team
Matthew Birzer, Fr., Undeclared
Jacob Dumford, Jr., Computer Science @
Alex Groesch, Jr., Finance
Chris Marco, Jr., Finance
Patrick O’Connell, Jr., Mechanical Engineering
Harvey Smith, Jr., Accountancy
Drake Stimson, So., Undeclared
Brent Swanberg, Sr., Finance @

2015-16 All-ACC Academic Women’s Fencing Team
Tara Hassett, Fr., Undeclared
Claudia Kulmacz, So., Undeclared @
Eva Niklinska, Jr., Biological Sciences

2015-16 All-ACC Academic Men’s Fencing Team
Axel Kiefer, Fr., PreProfessional
Jonah Shainberg, So., Undeclared @
Virgile Collineau, So., Economics @
Jonathan Fitzgerald, So., Arabic
Garrett McGrath, Sr., Computer Science @
John Crumpler, Jr., Accountancy
John Hallsten, Sr., PreProfessional Studies @

2016 ACC Men’s Fencing Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Garrett McGrath

2015-16 All-ACC Academic Women’s Swimming & Diving Team
Kyra Sarazen, Fr., Neuroscience & Behavior
Emma Gaboury, Sr., PreProfessional Studies

2015-16 All-ACC Academic Men’s Swimming & Diving Team
Daniel Speers, Fr., Mathematics
Robert Whitacre, So., Undeclared
Kevin Bradley, Jr., Accountancy
Reed Fujan, Jr., Management Consulting
Bogac Ayhan, Sr., Information Technology Management

–ND–

Joanne Norell, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since 2014 and coordinates communications efforts for the Notre Dame women’s soccer, men’s tennis, women’s tennis and fencing programs. Norell is a 2011 graduate of Purdue University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communication, and earned her master’s degree in sports industry management from Georgetown University in 2013.