(Photo by John Kelley)
Led by First-Team choices Lauren Herring from tennis and Nicolas Fink from swimming and diving, the University of Georgia boasts five members on the 2015 Capital One Academic All-America Division I Men’s and Women’s At-Large Teams, as announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) on Thursday.
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Joining Herring and Fink are swimmers Ty Stewart on the Second Team for the men and Maddie Locus and Chantal Van Landeghem on the Third Team for the women.
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The At-Large Teams include the sports of fencing, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming and diving, tennis, and water polo for both men and women, along with bowling, rowing and field hockey for women and volleyball and wrestling for men.
Georgia has at least one Academic All-American dating back to 1980.
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A senior from Greenville, N.C., Herring concluded her career as a five-time ITA All-American on the court and a three-time Academic All-American in the classroom. Herring finished second in school history with a combined 238 wins and second all-time in UGA history with 118 doubles victories. This past year, she helped Georgia advance to the NCAA Final Four, the ITA National Team Indoor Finals and the SEC Tournament Championship final as the Bulldogs went 24-7 and wound up ranked No. 5. Herring ended the 2015 season ranked No. 7 nationally in singles and No. 6 in doubles with Ellen Perez. Herring is a three-time ITA Scholar-Athlete and has been named to the SEC and Georgia academic honor rolls. She earned a Ramsey Scholarship and an SEC Community Service Postgraduate Scholarship.
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Fink, a senior from Morristown, N.J., recently earned an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship and was named as the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for swimming and diving. He was a Third-Team Academic All-American in 2014. Fink earned a Ramsey Scholarship, won the Joel Eaves Award as the male senior student-athlete with the top GPA, and was named to the SEC and Georgia academic honor rolls. Fink ended his career as a 19-time All-American, the second-highest total in school history. He won the 100 and 200 breaststroke titles at the SECs, becoming the first Bulldog and the second male in SEC history to win the 100 breaststroke all four years. Fink set school marks in the 100 and 200 breaststroke and on the 200 and 400 freestyle and 200 and 400 medley relays.
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A junior from Hattiesburg, Miss., Stewart scored in three events at the NCAAs and in five events at the SECs for the Bulldogs. He won the NCAA Elite 89 Award for Swimming in 2014 and 2015 for having the top GPA at the national meet. Stewart is a participant in the Georgia Honors Program, earned a Ramsey Scholarship, won swimming and diving’s Scholar-Athlete Award, was named to the SEC and Georgia honor rolls, and was picked as a CSCAA Scholar All-American.
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Locus, a senior from Sugarland, Texas, recently earned an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship and was named as the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for all sports. She graduated summa cum laude with a double major in Mathematics and Italian. Locus was named to the SEC and Georgia academic honor rolls and earned Georgia’s Women’s Swimming and Diving Scholarship. She capped her collegiate career by earning All-America status in the 50 and 100 freestyle and on the 200 and 400 freestyle relays at the NCAAs. Locus claimed SEC titles on the 200 and 400 freestyle relays.
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A junior from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Van Landeghem was an All-American in six events at the NCAAs and won SEC titles in the 50 freestyle and on the 200 and 400 freestyle relays. She previously was named an Elite 89 winner as the swimmer or diver at the national meet with the highest GPA and picked up Georgia swimming’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award. Van Landeghem was a Ramsey Scholarship recipient, was named a CSCAA Scholar All-American, and was chosen for the SEC and Georgia academic honor rolls.