Westfield, MA --- Senior classmates Ali Barrett (Hingham, MA) and Christy Deininger (N. Attleboro, MA) led 30 honorees from the women's track and field team who were selected to the MASCAC All-Academic team as announced by league publicist Emily Diekelmann.
With 41 total student-athletes on the roster, the squad posted a spring semester grade point average of 3.30 while having the second most named in the MASCAC, just five off of Bridgewater State's total of 35.
The other seniors who were recognized included Marlene Christenson (Danvers, MA), Megean Mulcahy (Worcester, MA) and Hannah Werneth (N. Yarmouth, ME) as the juniors were underscored by Liz Bodensieck (Avon, MA), Amanda Caldarone (Danvers, MA), Brittany Hodgerney (Leicester, MA), Alyssa Jasper (Rockland, MA), Chelsey Peso (Uxbridge, MA), Shannon Trybus (Bondsville, MA) and Kim West (Harvard, MA).
The sophomores who will receive certificates are Samantha Barron (N. Andover, MA), Eva Bunszell (Bridgewater, MA), Hanna Carson (Natick, MA), Francesca Casasanta (Hopkinton, MA), Amy Defrancesco (Tewksbury, MA), Molly Downing (Dedham, MA), Dalena Le (Worcester, MA/Doherty), Emily Riehl (Trumbull, CT), Kelly Sterns (Danvers, MA) and Nichole Tillery (Auburn, MA).
First-year teammates Amber Army (Worcester, MA/Leicester), Danielle Cote (Dighton, MA), Lily Curtis (Dudley, MA), Melanie Hunter (Maynard, MA), Elizabeth McCormack (Gloucester, MA), Erin McIntyre (Whitinsville, MA), Becca Sochin (Seekonk, MA) and Courtney Spinelli (Tewksbury, MA) rounded out those honored on the conferences spring academic honor roll.
To earn a spot on the MASCAC All-Academic Team, a student-athlete must have achieved a 3.20 cumulative or semester-based GPA during their season of competition.
Deininger and Barrett have been distinguished in every semester enrolled as Barrett was recognized 12 times being a member of the cross country and track and field team. Caldarone, Christenson, Hodgerney, Jasper, Peso and Werneth earned their third career recognition with MASCAC Spring All-Academic laurels.
Under the tutleage of second-year head coach Jim Lemieux, the Lancers placed second at the MASCAC Championships before recording their third straight finish in the top 10 at the Division III New England Championships.
Jasper and Deininger also claimed All-American accolades at the NCAA Division III Championships in May while they were both lauded on the Capital One Co-SIDA All-Academic Disctrict I team at the end of May.
Overall, WSU had the third most honorees named to the MASCAC Spring All-Academic team with 92 while the sum for the 2013-14 academic year of 234 set a new institutional standard. For the spring semester, all student-athletes at Worcester State posted a stellar 3.01 grade point average.