University Letter

UND's faculty and staff newsletter

Record-breaking year in the books for UND student-athletes

The University of North Dakota enjoyed its most successful season of competition at the Division I level in 2016-17, including four regular-season conference championships, one playoff championship and multiple national postseason appearances. UND’s student-athletes also managed to match that level of performance in the classroom, according to data released today by the UND Athletics Academic Services department.

UND’s 407 student-athletes combined for a 3.279 collective grade-point average during the Spring 2017 semester, the highest-recorded single-semester GPA in UND Athletics history. The previous high was 3.277 during the Fall 2014 semester. Additionally, UND’s collective GPA for the 2016-17 academic year was 3.24, matching the school record set in 2014-15.

UND’s student-athletes have now achieved a collective GPA or 3.0 or higher in every semester since the University transitioned to Division I in 2008-09.

“Our student-athletes have done it again,” said UND Athletics Director Brian Faison. “In a year of championship performances by our student-athletes, their academic achievements are truly championship-caliber. Congratulations to our student-athletes, coaches, and academic support staff on their commitment to getting the job done in the classroom.”

Seventy-six percent of UND’s student-athletes (308 out of 407) achieved a 3.0 semester GPA during the spring semester, including 74 who boasted a perfect 4.0. Sixteen of UND’s 18 teams had a GPA of 3.0 or greater during the spring semester; UND’s women’s teams combined for a 3.44 GPA while the men’s teams recorded a 3.13 GPA. The women’s teams with the highest semester GPAs included golf (3.58), cross country (3.58), softball (3.53), track & field (3.52) and swimming & diving (3.47). On the men’s side, the GPA leaders included golf (3.50), swimming & diving (3.29), cross country (3.27), hockey (3.26) and track & field (3.25).

Other notable academic achievements to date in 2016-17 have included:

  • Sixty-eight student-athlete were eligible for degrees, including 50 during spring commencement.
  • Four teams earned NCAA Public Recognition Awards, the most in the Big Sky Conference: men’s cross country, women’s cross country, men’s tennis and women’s tennis.
  • Men’s and women’s cross country were both named USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams. It was the 20th time in the last 21 years for the women’s program and 19th time in the last 20 for the men.
  • Men’s and women’s swimming & diving were both named 2016 Fall CSCAA Scholar All-America Teams.
  • 144 student-athletes have earned academic all-conference honors from the Big Sky, NCHC, WAC and WCHA (Big Sky spring and NCHC freshmen have yet to be named).
  • Four student-athletes have been named to CoSIDA Academic All-District Teams: Steph Frey (swimming), Halli Krzyzaniak (hockey), Brian Labat (football) and Jared Michel (track).
  • Krzyzaniak received the WCHA Postgraduate Scholarship.
  • Football players Dylan Bakker, Brian Labat, Luke Mathewson & Joe Mollberg were named to the NFF Hampshire Honor Society.