CORVALLIS, Ore. – Because of the outstanding academic achievements of its student-athletes, the Lewis-Clark State College athletic department earned Presidents’ Academic Excellence status in the Cascade Collegiate Conference for the 2021-22 school year, conference commissioner Robert Cashell announced on Tuesday.
To earn the honor, an athletic department must have male and female student-athletes, who compete in sports where the conference declares a champion, have an overall combined 3.0 or better GPA. The athletic department also must have at least 60 percent of its student-athletes who are eligible receive Academic All-Conference recognition. To earn Academic All-Conference status, a student-athlete must be at least a sophomore in class standing and have a 3.20 or better GPA.
The 203 LC State student-athletes had a combined 3.38 GPA, the second-highest in the conference behind Oregon Tech, and also had 65 percent earn Academic All-Conference honors. For the just concluded spring semester, LC State athletes had a combined 3.43 GPA. During the 2021 fall semester, LC had 165 student-athletes post a 3.0 GPA or better.
“This is a great honor and shows that at LC State, being a student-athlete is more than a label, it is a reality.” LC State president Cynthia Pemberton said. “We take pride knowing our student-athletes are successful in both the classroom and competition. They are true Warriors.”
LC State had 91 of its 139 student-athletes eligible earn Academic All-Conference honors. The sports that qualify for conference championship sports are men’s and women’s cross country, soccer, basketball, golf, track and field, and wrestling. Men’s baseball and women’s volleyball and softball also count.
“Earning Presidents’ Academic Excellence designation represents the highest academic honor our departments can earn from the CCC,” Cashell said. “It is a great accomplishment and recognizes the outstanding efforts in the classroom.”