24 Yellow Jackets named to the Spring Tom Bohlsen Academic All-HCAC Team

CARMEL, Ind. – The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) has announced the Spring honorees for Tom Bohlsen Academic All-HCAC with 24 Defiance student-athletes receiving the honor. Academic All-Conference selections have at least a cumulative 3.5 GPA and are varsity athletes.

The softball team led the way with 12 student-athletes on the list. Earning Academic All-HCAC honors for the squad were senior Taylor Biggs, sophomore Genesis Brooks, senior Hali Geraci, sophomore Laney Grimwood, senior Kalin Hubble, junior Alivia Kruczkowski, senior Sophie Moller, senior Jen Nashalsky, sophomore Madison Pueschel, junior Marissa Roberts, junior Hunter Schwochow, and sophomore Brooke Silcox.

This is the third All-Academic nod for Geraci and Nashalsky and the second for Hubble, Kruczkowski, Moller, Roberts, and Schwochow.

The baseball team had nine student-athletes honored: senior Tyler Hines, junior Austin Horning, senior Nate Kaffenbarger, senior Alex Morr, senior Cohen Nies, sophomore Mitchell Roever, sophomore Jeremy Russo, senior Luke Thomeier, and junior Josh Vischer.

This is the third All-Academic selection for Thomeier and the second nod for Horning and Vischer.

Three student-athletes from the women's outdoor track and field team earned spots on the team as well. Senior Lisa Markau earns her third All-Academic recognition, while junior Brianna Snider earned her second All-Academic nod and senior Katelyn Smith receives her first selection for outdoor track and field. . Markau has also received All-Academic recognition three times for indoor door track and field and once for cross country. Smith and Snider were named All-Academic this past fall for cross country. Snider is also two-time All-Academic honoree in soccer.

The cumulative GPA is the student-athletes GPA at the end of the semester preceding the end of the fall season. The student-athlete must have completed the equivalent of a full academic year and must be a full-time enrolled student at the institution to be eligible for the Academic All-Conference award.

The Spring 2022 HCAC All-Academic list features 352 athletes from the 10 member institutions and four affiliate members and showcases student athletes from the Spring HCAC sports of baseball, men's golf, men's and women's lacrosse, softball, men's tennis and men's and women's outdoor track and field.

The award is named after Tom Bohlsen, who served as the HCAC's first commissioner from 1998 to 2008.