The Stags proved once again what it means to be student-athletes as they enjoyed tremendous success in the classroom during 2013-14.
During the fall and spring semesters combined, there were 607 grade point averages that registered at 3.0 or above. The Stags were included on the Fairfield University Dean's List 305 times between the fall and spring semesters.
Three Stags – Hayley Moyer (volleyball), Lauren Liseth (softball), Alex Witkus (baseball) – received Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team honors and were placed on the national ballot for Academic All-America consideration.
But, perhaps, the most notable individual achievement came when it was announced the swimmer Kevin Greener would give the Valedictory Address at the 2014 Fairfield University Undergraduate Commencement ceremony. Greener graduated with a degree in physics and a minor in mathematics and had a 3.86 GPA.
Overall, Fairfield had 131 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) All-Academic selections across 16 sports. Men's Lacrosse had 10 included on the ECAC Lacrosse League All-Academic Team while Greg Perraut and Michael Roe earned New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (NEILA) Senior Scholar Academic All-Region honors. Felicitas Heinen and Valerie Buurma were named to the America East Field Hockey All-Academic Squad and were two of seven Stags named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) National Academic Squad.
Men's & Women's Swimming & Diving, Men's & Women's Cross Country, Field Hockey, and Women's Soccer also received team recognition from their respective coaching associations for their academic performances.
Fairfield also received recognition from the NCAA for their past academic success. In October, the NCAA released the latest Graduation Success Rate (GSR) data. Fairfield University had the highest GSR of all 11 MAAC institutions and the 12th-highest in the nation. Fairfield had a GSR of 97 percent with 17 of its varsity programs above the national average of Division I student-athletes that enrolled between 2003-06. Fifteen of Fairfield's 19 varsity programs during that time period (2003-06) had a 100 percent success rate for the student-athletes. Those programs were: men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's golf, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's tennis, field hockey, women's lacrosse, softball, men's swimming & diving, and volleyball. Two teams, baseball and women's rowing, had a GSR above 90 percent.
In May, seven Fairfield University athletic teams were cited for excellence in the classroom by receiving the NCAA Public Recognition Award, the most of any MAAC institution. Men's and women's cross country, men's and women's golf, men's lacrosse, men's swimming, and men's tennis collected the award by achieving an Academic Progress Rate (APR) that ranked among the top 10 percent in their respective sport.
