Wittenberg Soccer Standouts Land Academic All-District Honors

Jay Knox

Jamie Mack

Springfield, Ohio — Wittenberg University soccer standouts Jay Knox, class of 2009 from Gahanna, Ohio, and Jamie Mack, class of 2009 from Rochester, N.Y., have been recognized for the combination of their athletic and academic accomplishments with second- and third-team CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America College Division All-District IV honors, respectively.

This is the first Academic All-District IV award for either student-athlete. The selections are a result of online voting conducted recently by members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Student-athletes who made the first-team in the district voting will now be considered for Academic All-America awards.

Knox collected a second-team award thanks in large part to his stellar 3.86 grade point average while majoring in geography. While serving as president of Gamma Theta Upsilon, the geography honor society, Knox has been a Dean's List selection his entire Wittenberg career. He also is a member of Chi Alpha Sigma, the student-athlete honorary.

On the field, Knox has helped the Tigers to one of the best seasons in school history. He is a key defenseman in Head Coach Steve Dawson's rotation, appearing in 17 games and starting one, as Wittenberg posted a regular season record of 15-3 overall, including a 6-3 record in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) heading into Wednesday's NCAC Tournament semifinal game at Hiram.

Mack, an English major with a minor in journalism, took third team honors thanks in part to her outstanding 3.49 grade point average. In her academic career, Mack has consistently earned Dean's List honors, while studying in Wittenberg's Honors Program. She has also been a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), and she served as sports editor for Wittenberg's student newspaper The Torch.

As a standout defender on the pitch, Mack helped the Tiger women's soccer team earn a National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Team Academic Award in 2007 while appearing in 19 games, including three starting assignments, as Wittenberg won its first NCAC regular season title. The Tigers went on to capture a second straight NCAC Tournament crown and reach the NCAA Division III Tournament Round of 16 for the first time in school history.

An All-NCAC Honorable Mention selection in 2006, Mack has helped to anchor one of the stingiest defenses in Wittenberg history, a unit which only allowed eight goals in 2007 and 13 in the 2008 regular season. Wittenberg heads into this week's NCAC Tournament with records of 10-3-5 overall and 6-2-1 in the NCAC regular season.

Written By: Ben Bradley, SID Assistant

059-08