Three Huskies earn CoSIDA At-Large Academic All-America honors
6/20/2019 12:45:00 PM | General, Wrestling, Women's Swim & Dive
AUSTIN, TEXAS – Though classes are out and games are done for the season, St. Cloud State University continues to cement its place as one of the top athletic and academic schools in Division II. On Thursday, three Huskies earned Academic All-America honors from CoSIDA, as wrestling's Brett Velasquez (Bennington, Neb. / Bennington) and Kolton Eischens (Pierz, Minn. / Pierz) along with women's swimming and diving's Britin Thomsen (New Prague, Minn. / New Prague) were named to the First Team Academic All-America At-Large team after earning First Team Academic All-District honors earlier this spring.
The 2018-19 Google Cloud Academic All-America Men's and Women's At-Large teams are selected by members of CoSIDA and recognize the top student-athletes in the nation for their combined performances in athletics and the classroom. The At-Large Team recognizes student-athletes from the sports of wrestling, swimming and diving tennis, golf, ice hockey, rifle, skiing, fencing, lacrosse, gymnastics, men's volleyball and water polo.
Velasquez, a three-time Academic All-American, closed out his outstanding career with St. Cloud State this past season, leading the wrestling team to its second consecutive NCAA Division II team title and fourth since 2015. On the mat, Velasquez posted a 23-5 record his senior season and earned All-America honors for the fourth time in his career with an impressive fourth place finish in the 125-pound division at the 2019 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships in March. More impressively, Valesquez closed his Husky career with a 103-14 career record and was the NCAA Division II individual national champion at the 125 weight class in 2016. Academically, Velasquez was honors the NCAA's prestigious Post Graduate Scholarship and additionally earned Academic All-Conference and the NSIC's Elite 18 Award multiple times throughout his career.
Eischens and Thomsen are both first time First Team Google Cloud Academic All-America honorees, earning the honor after impressive 2018-19 seasons. As a member of the national champion wrestling team, Eischens closed the season with a 25-4 overall record at the 174 -weight class and earned All-America honors with his fourth place finish individually at the NCAA Championships in March. The technology management major additionally earned Academic All-Conference and NWCA All-Academic honors during the season for his performances both on the mat and in the classroom during the season.
Thomsen concluded her impressive career with St. Cloud State this past winter, helping the Huskies women's swimming and diving team win the 2019 NSIC Championship this past season. Additionally, the senior diver qualified for the NCAA Championships for the second consecutive season and earned double All-America honors with a ninth place finish on the 3-meter board and a 12th place finish in 1-meter. Thomsen additionally was named the NSIC Diver of the Year for the third consecutive season in 2019, as she won both the 1-meter and 3-meter competitions at the conference championships. She is a three-time Academic All-Conference honoree and received the SCSU Excellence in Leadership Award in 2018-19.
The 2018-19 Google Cloud Academic All-America Men's and Women's At-Large teams are selected by members of CoSIDA and recognize the top student-athletes in the nation for their combined performances in athletics and the classroom. The At-Large Team recognizes student-athletes from the sports of wrestling, swimming and diving tennis, golf, ice hockey, rifle, skiing, fencing, lacrosse, gymnastics, men's volleyball and water polo.
Velasquez, a three-time Academic All-American, closed out his outstanding career with St. Cloud State this past season, leading the wrestling team to its second consecutive NCAA Division II team title and fourth since 2015. On the mat, Velasquez posted a 23-5 record his senior season and earned All-America honors for the fourth time in his career with an impressive fourth place finish in the 125-pound division at the 2019 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships in March. More impressively, Valesquez closed his Husky career with a 103-14 career record and was the NCAA Division II individual national champion at the 125 weight class in 2016. Academically, Velasquez was honors the NCAA's prestigious Post Graduate Scholarship and additionally earned Academic All-Conference and the NSIC's Elite 18 Award multiple times throughout his career.
Eischens and Thomsen are both first time First Team Google Cloud Academic All-America honorees, earning the honor after impressive 2018-19 seasons. As a member of the national champion wrestling team, Eischens closed the season with a 25-4 overall record at the 174 -weight class and earned All-America honors with his fourth place finish individually at the NCAA Championships in March. The technology management major additionally earned Academic All-Conference and NWCA All-Academic honors during the season for his performances both on the mat and in the classroom during the season.
Thomsen concluded her impressive career with St. Cloud State this past winter, helping the Huskies women's swimming and diving team win the 2019 NSIC Championship this past season. Additionally, the senior diver qualified for the NCAA Championships for the second consecutive season and earned double All-America honors with a ninth place finish on the 3-meter board and a 12th place finish in 1-meter. Thomsen additionally was named the NSIC Diver of the Year for the third consecutive season in 2019, as she won both the 1-meter and 3-meter competitions at the conference championships. She is a three-time Academic All-Conference honoree and received the SCSU Excellence in Leadership Award in 2018-19.
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