Lehigh wrestlers garner academic honors from NWCA
5/9/2012 1:03:00 AM | Men's Wrestling
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – On the heels of another successful season on the mats, the Lehigh wrestling program was recognized for its academic work as the National Wrestling Coaches Association announced its All-Academic Individuals and top 30 teams on Tuesday. The Mountain Hawks ranked ninth in the country with a 3.18 team GPA, while seniors Brian Tanen and Zach Rey and juniors Robert Hamlin and Shane Welsh were named to the individual All-Academic Team.
The individual All-Academic team has qualifying standards based on grade point average and season record/accomplishments. Rey and Hamlin were both named to the team for the second straight year.
Rey became Lehigh's 15th three-time All-American and its first three-time heavyweight All-American with his runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships. A four-time EIWA finalist, Rey finished his Lehigh career with 116 victories, the third most in school history. In addition to his numerous on-mat accomplishments, Rey has done well in the classroom, where he carries a 3.01 GPA majoring in Earth and Environmental Science. Like Rey, Hamlin found his way onto the podium at the NCAA Championships in St. Louis, placing fourth at 184 for his second career All-American medal. The 2010 NCAA runner-up captured his second straight EIWA Championship and finished with a 31-3 record. Hamlin carries a 3.36 grade point average majoring in Materials Science and Engineering.
Tanen made the most of his senior season in the Brown and White, qualifying for his first NCAA tournament, after placing sixth at the EIWA Championships at Princeton. A four-year letter winner, Tanen earned his degree in Earth and Environmental Science in 2011 and has earned a 3.88 GPA while working towards his Master's degree in Secondary Education.
Welsh has always been one of the top students in Lehigh's wrestling room, as he carries a 3.33 GPA in Lehigh's rigorous chemical engineering program. He made the most of his on-mat opportunities in 2012, winning Lehigh's starting position at 149 late in the season. Welsh won an EIWA Championship as the No. 6 seed at 149 and qualified for his first NCAA tournament, capping a 23-7 season.
This year's Individual All-Academic Team featured 87 total athletes, five NCAA Champions, three NCAA Runner-Ups, 23 All-Americans and 77 NCAA Qualifiers. Lehigh was one of five schools to have four or more wrestlers named to the squad, joining American, Nebraska, Penn State and Virginia.
Lehigh was one of five EIWA member institutions to rank in the top ten of the NWCA's All-Academic Teams list. Seven of the EIWA's 14 member schools cracked the top 30. Nebraska topped the team rankings with a 3.46 team GPA, while Harvard, American, Utah Valley and Indiana closed out the top five.
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