2017 CoSIDA ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT TEAMS - MEN'S AT-LARGE
MINNEAPOLIS -- Augsburg College wrestler
Sam Bennyhoff (SO, Mound, Minn./Mound-Westonka HS) and men's hockey players
Nate Flynn (JR, Hastings, Minn.) and
Rory Vesel (SR, Rochester, Minn./Lourdes HS) were named to the Academic All-District 6 Division III Men's At-Large Team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), it was announced on Thursday.
Bennyhoff is a physics major with a 3.91 grade-point average, Flynn is an accounting/finance major with a 3.97 GPA, and Vesel is a business management major with a 3.91 GPA. The three earned their honors in the men's at-large category, which includes student athletes from 12 men's sports: fencing, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming and diving, tennis, volleyball, water polo and wrestling.
Augsburg was one of only five NCAA Division III schools, and the lone institution in District 6, to have three or more selections to the Academic All-District Men's At-Large squad among the eight geographic districts. Johns Hopkins (Md.) had four selections, while Augsburg joined Worcester Polytechnic (Mass.), Hobart (N.Y.) and Emory (Ga.) with three selections each. A total of 89 student-athletes nationwide earned Division III Academic All-District Men's At-Large honors.
Bennyhoff earned his second trip to the
NCAA Division III National Championships in wrestling in March, finishing with a 30-9 record, including 11 major decisions, five technical falls and two pins at 133 pounds. He was part of an Augsburg squad that finished second as a team in the national tournament, while also earning
second-place honors in the Scholar All-America Division III team rankings from the National Wrestling Coaches Association with a 3.46 team GPA. Bennyhoff earned his second straight NWCA Scholar All-America individual honor this season.
Bennyhoff won the
NCAA West Regional title at 133 for the second straight year, one of two tournaments he won on the year, along with three runner-up finishes. He was 23-7 against Division III opponents this year. A two-year varsity starter at 133, Bennyhoff is now 58-16 in his Augsburg career with 17 major decisions, eight technical falls and eight pins.
Both Flynn and Vesel earned
All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's hockey honors for the second straight season in 2016-17. The two were also named to the
American Hockey Coaches Association Divisions II/III All-America squad, Vesel as a first-team West Region defender and Flynn as a second-team West Region forward. Vesel also was named to the U.S. College Hockey Online Division III All-USCHO squad as a third-team defender.
The pair were leaders on an Augsburg men's hockey squad that repeated as MIAC playoff titlists this season, finishing 17-5-6 overall, 9-2-5 in MIAC play and reaching the NCAA Division III national playoff quarterfinals for the second straight year. Augsburg's men's hockey team has the highest team GPA of any Auggie athletic team, with a 3.84 team GPA so far this season.
Flynn led the Auggies in scoring for the second straight season, with 15 goals and 15 assists for 30 points, including two power-play goals and three game-winning goals. He finished the season second
among MIAC players in overall points, tied for third in goals and tied for ninth in assists.
Flynn recorded a goal or assist in 19 of his 26 games this season, including nine multi-point games. He finished the season on a seven-game point streak, with three goals and eight assists for 11 points in the span. In his 80-game career for the Auggies, he has 39 goals and 31 assists for 70 career points. He is a multiple-time Academic All-MIAC honoree.
Vesel recorded a power-play goal, along with a team-best 18 assists, for 19 points this season. His 18 assists were tied for third-most among
all MIAC players in overall statistics, and second-most among MIAC defenders. His 19 points were third-most among MIAC defenders.
He had a point in 13 of his 28 games, including a four-assist performance in Augsburg's 8-4 win over Wisconsin-Superior on Nov. 3. In his 106-game Augsburg career, he finished with 13 goals and 44 assists for 57 points. He was a team assistant captain this season, and is a multiple-time Academic All-MIAC honoree.
The Academic All-District team is part of the
Academic All-America program, as selected by CoSIDA. Top student-athletes from NCAA Division III programs in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan are eligible for inclusion on the District 6 team, one of eight geographic district squads. Student-athletes must have a grade-point average above 3.30 (4.0 scale) and have outstanding athletic credentials. College sports information directors in the district vote for the teams.
This is the sixth year of the expanded Academic All-America program, as CoSIDA has moved from recognizing a University Division (Division I) and a College Division (all non-Division I), doubling the number of scholar-athletes honored. The teams include NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II and NCAA Division III participants, while the College Division team combines NAIA, Canadian and two-year schools. First-team Academic All-District members advance to the Academic All-America ballot, voted on by a committee of CoSIDA members.
The Division III Academic All-America program is being financially supported by the NCAA Division III national governance structure, to assist CoSIDA with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2016-17 Division III Academic All-America teams program.
(Note: This release includes information taken from the CoSIDA Academic All-District release and from Augsburg releases in men's hockey and wrestling.)
