July 26, 2012
Notre Dame, Ind. – Three of Notre Dame’s 22 sports that compete in the BIG EAST Conference were honored with the 2011-12 BIG EAST Academic Team Excellence Award recognizing the highest collective grade-point averages in each conference sport.
The Fighting Irish women’s golf (3.715), men’s indoor track and field (3.307) and men’s outdoor track and field teams (3.307) were recipients of the fifth annual awards. For all three program’s, this marks the second consecutive year that they have been honored. Men’s indoor and outdoor track and field have captured the honor three times in the five-year history of the BIG EAST Academic Excellence Award.
In total, 19 of Notre Dame’s 22 teams that compete in the BIG EAST Conference earned better than a 3.00 GPA during the recently completed academic year. The women’s golf team paced all Irish squads with its 3.715 mark.
Twelve BIG EAST schools had at least one team honored with DePaul leading the way with five teams recognized. Notre Dame and Villanova had three teams selected while Georgetown, Providence, St. John’s and Seton Hall had two each. Cincinnati, Louisville, Marquette, Rutgers and West Virginia were represented by one team each.
The winners were chosen based on the 2011-12 grade-point average of each student-athlete who appeared on an institution’s roster as of the last contest of the championship segment in each conference-sponsored sport.
Since 2007-08 when the awards began, Notre Dame teams have been honored 18 times. Men’s indoor and outdoor track and field lead the way, being selected three times. Women’s golf, men’s swimming and diving, men’s basketball and women’s tennis have been honored twice and baseball, men’s lacrosse, women’s lacrosse and men’s tennis have won the award once each.
2011-12 BIG EAST Team Excellence Award WinnersSport SchoolBaseball St. John'sMen's Basketball LouisvilleWomen's Basketball DePaulMen's Cross Country VillanovaWomen's Cross Country West VirginiaField Hockey GeorgetownFootball RutgersMen's Golf DePaulWomen's Golf Notre DameMen's Lacrosse St. John'sWomen's Lacrosse CincinnatiWomen's Rowing GeorgetownMen's Soccer DePaulWomen's Soccer MarquetteSoftball Seton HallMen's Swimming and Diving VillanovaWomen's Swimming and Diving VillanovaMen's Tennis DePaulWomen's Tennis DePaulMen's Indoor Track and Field Notre DameWomen's Indoor Track and Field ProvidenceMen's Outdoor Track and Field Notre DameWomen's Outdoor Track and Field ProvidenceWomen's Volleyball Seton Hall