NFHCA Scholars of Distinction List | NFHCA National Academic Award List | NFHCA National Academic Team Award List

LEICESTER, Mass. – Hawks senior Lauren Niemann (Bay Shore, N.Y.) has been honored with a Zag Sports/National Field Hockey Coaches Association Scholar of Distinction for the second straight year, as announced by the NFHCA on Wednesday morning.

Niemann is one of 321 NCAA Division III student-athletes to earn a 2019 Scholar of Distinction from the NFHCA.

This week, the NFHCA announced 167 student-athletes in Division I and 89 student-athletes in Division II were awarded Scholars of Distinction, bringing the total across all three NCAA Divisions to 577.

A student-athlete is recognized and honored with a Scholar of Distinction by having a cumulative grade point average of 3.90 or higher through the first semester of the 2019-20 academic year.

Earlier this month, Niemann, senior Samantha Carter (Boothbay Harbor, Maine) and sophomores Baileigh Griese (Woodstock, N.Y.) and Kylian Kelly (Shrewsbury, Mass.) were named to the 2019 Zag Sports/NFHCA Division III National Academic Squad.

Carter and Niemann became the first Hawks in program history to earn spots on the Zag Sports/NFHCA Division III National Academic Squad in all four seasons of their eligibility.

The Division III National Academic Squad program honors student-athletes who have achieved a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 or higher through the first semester of the 2019-20 academic year. 

This year, a total of 1,943 student-athletes from 157 Division III institutions earned recognition on the 2019 Zag Field Hockey/NFHCA Division III National Academic Squad.

The same quartet of Hawks was named to the Zag Sports/NFHCA Division III National Academic Squad last season after each of them averaged a GPA higher than 3.30 following the first semester in the 2018-19 academic year.

The Hawks field hockey program was presented a 2019 Zag Sports/NFHCA Division III National Academic Team Award on March 5 as the program finished with a GPA above a 3.00 to qualify for the National Academic Team Award for the first time since 2015.

The NFHCA rounds out their academic award season for Division III on April 2 with the announcement of the Zag Sports/NFHCA National Scholar-Athlete of the Year.