Northeast Conference Release
SOMERSET, N.J. - LIU Brooklyn Athletics claimed a Northeast Conference-best six Team GPA awards, as league-wide academic honors were announced on Thursday. The Blackbirds' baseball, women's bowling, men's golf, men's soccer, women's tennis and volleyball squads boasted the top GPA's among NEC schools in their respective sports for the 2015-16 academic year. LIU tied with Saint Francis U., who also boasted six awards, while Wagner earned four.
The 3.818 grade point average compiled by the LIU's women's tennis team was the highest in any sport this past academic year. NEC women's bowling student-athletes posted the highest overall grades of any sport in the conference, combining for a 3.572 GPA.
Sacred Heart student-athletes posted a combined 3.331 grade point average to set a new conference record and win the Team Institutional Award. The Pioneers edged out Saint Francis U (3.289), Robert Morris (3.270) and LIU Brooklyn (3.269) to claim the coveted honor. Overall, the NEC's 4,000+ student-athletes averaged an all-time high 3.201 GPA for the 2015-16 academic year. Similarly, 84.0 percent of NEC teams finished with a 3.0 or better GPA.
In addition to the academic accolades, LIU Brooklyn athletics won three NEC titles on the fields of play (men's soccer, men's indoor track & field, softball) and was runner-up on five more occasions (volleyball, women's bowling, women's indoor track & field, women's outdoor track & field, men's outdoor track & field).
On an individual level, LIU athletes earned all-conference regonition a remarkable 77 times throughout the 2015-16 season, with 40 of those being first-team nods. A total of 19 major awards were accumulated by LIU Brooklyn team members, including three Rookie of the Year and three Coach of the Year honors.
Now wrapping up its 35th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 10 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#23), Baltimore (#27), and Hartford/New Haven (#30).
Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 22 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary's, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner.
For more information on the NEC, visit the league's official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Google+, all @NECsports.