Inside Athletics

Five Express Student-Athletes Earn NJCAA Academic Honors

Five Express student-athletes were named Academic All-Americans by the NJCAA. Pictured above, from left to right and top to bottom, is Hallie Thompson, softball, Conor Totzke, men's golf, Chris Ward, baseball, Kasey Graham, softball, and Sean Kaighin, men's soccer. Photos by Seth Foley and design by Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Five Express student-athletes were named Academic All-Americans by the NJCAA. Pictured above, from left to right and top to bottom, is Hallie Thompson, softball, Conor Totzke, men's golf, Chris Ward, baseball, Kasey Graham, softball, and Sean Kaighin, men's soccer. Photos by Seth Foley and design by Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Posted: Jun 25, 2012

By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information

Toledo, OH---Five Express student-athletes have earned national academic honors from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).

Sean Kaighin (Clay HS/Oregon, OH), of the Express men's soccer team, earned the highest academic honor among the five - Superior Academic Achievement - with a 3.91 GPA.

Four others earned Exemplary Academic Achievement honors:

 - Chris Ward (Brunswick HS/Brunswick, OH), baseball, 3.75

 - Kasey Graham (Clay HS/Oregon, OH), softball, 3.73 GPA

 - Conor Totzke (Liberty Center HS/Liberty Center, OH), men's golf, 3.65 GPA

 - Hallie Thompson (Clay HS/Oregon, OH), softball, 3.62 GPA

To earn these academic honors, a student-athlete must earn at least a 3.60 cumulative GPA. The three levels of honors include: NJCAA Pinnacle Award for Academic Excellence (4.00 GPA), NJCAA Award for Superior Academic Achievement (3.80 GPA to 3.99 GPA), and NJCAA Award for Exemplary Academic Achievement (3.60 GPA to 3.79 GPA).

Including this year, a total of 68 Express student-athletes have earned academic honors from the NJCAA at least once since 1994. The awards were formerly called "Academic All-Americans," but the NJCAA no longer uses that term. Melinda Kistner (1999-2000), Laura Wilson (2003-04), Lorenzo Carrion-Bistolfi (2009-10), and Cal Edwards (2010-11) are the only two-time winners.