Coconino News

Northern Arizona University's athletic programs have concluded the 2021-22 academic year with a notable achievement, securing 58 Big Sky Spring All-Academic awards. The honors were announced by the league office on Wednesday and included athletes from golf, men's and women's tennis, and men's and women's outdoor track & field.

This year's number of honorees marks an increase of 12 compared to the spring season of 2020. NAU Athletics has also seen growth in fall and winter recognitions, with increases from 40 to 62 in fall honorees and from 47 to 60 in winter honorees when compared to the previous academic year.

Eligibility for Big Sky All-Academic honors requires student-athletes to meet certain criteria: participation in at least half of their team's competitions or competing at outdoor conference championships for track & field athletes; maintaining a cumulative GPA of at least 3.2; and completing one academic term at their current Big Sky institution.

The Lumberjacks' success extended beyond academics, as they captured Big Sky Conference titles in golf and women's tennis while sweeping the outdoor track & field championships. The men's tennis team reached the conference semifinal.

The women's outdoor track & field team led with 24 honorees, followed by the men's outdoor track & field team with 21. Men's tennis had six selections, women's tennis five, and golf two.

Among the honorees, 39 achieved a cumulative GPA of at least 3.50, with six maintaining a perfect GPA of 4.00.

NAU Athletics closed out the academic year with a total of 180 Big Sky All-Academic student-athletes alongside an additional 30 WAC honorees from swimming & diving.