April 1, 2005

Cleveland, Ohio -- The 20 winners of the Third Annual Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association Scholar-Athlete Teams were announced this week by the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association (DI-AAA ADA).

"We are very proud of these outstanding student-athletes," says Pat Meiser-McKnett, chair of the Division I-AAA ADA Scholar-Athlete Team Selection Committee and athletics director at the University of Hartford. "They represent the best of Division I-AAA."

Basketball players from all Division I-AAA ADA member institutions are eligible for these prestigious awards. Each of the nominees were required to have a minimum grade point average of 3.20 (on a 4.00 scale) in undergraduate study and have been a starter or important reserve with legitimate athletics credentials. He/she must have reached sophomore athletics and academic standing at the nominated institution and have completed a minimum of one full academic year at the nominated institution. He/she must also have participated in 50 percent of the games played at his/her designated position.

Additionally, from the Scholar-Athlete teams, one male and female student-athlete were selected as the Division I-AAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Receiving the women's honor was Tiffany Mor, a senior at the University of Wisconsin Green Bay, with a 3.77 GPA in elementary education and Spanish; while the men's award went to Drake Diener, a senior DePaul University, with a 3.42 GPA in secondary education.

A special Review Committee of Division I-AAA athletics directors was responsible for selecting the winners. Completing this task were Committee Chair Pat Meiser-McKnett, Hartford; Jerry Baker, Charleston; Pete Carlon, Texas Arlington; Gary Cunningham, UC Santa Barbara; Don DiJulia, St. Joseph's; Bill Husak, Loyola Marymount; Ken Kavanagh, Bradley; Jean Lenti-Ponsetto, DePaul; and John Planek, Loyola (Ill.).

Now in its fourth year, the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association's mission is to enhance initiatives common to its Division I-AAA membership (the 90 Division I institutions that do not sponsor football), in particular, aspects related to their flagship basketball programs. The Association is administered by NACDA, which, now in its 40th year, is the professional and educational association for more than 6,150 athletics directors, associates, assistants and conference administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. Through its series of management seminars, clinics and workshops and publication of the bi-monthly magazine Athletics Administration, NACDA offers educational opportunities to its members. More than 1,200 athletics administrators annually attend the NACDA Convention. Additionally, the Association operates the Sports Academy Directors' Cup program, which honors the all-sports champion in each of the NCAA Divisions -- I, II and III -- and the NAIA, for a total of four trophies.

Men's Scholar-Athlete Team

Women's Scholar-Athlete Team