April 1, 2008
Bridgeport, Pa. - The Collegiate Water Polo Association has announced the selection of 101 student-athletes to the 2007 Men's All-Academic Varsity Team and seven Fordham University water polo student-athletes have been named to the team.
Student-athletes were recognized in three levels: 3.2 to 3.4 (Excellent), 3.41 to 3.7 (Superior) and 3.71 to 4.0 (Outstanding) with five recipients recording 4.0 grade point averages.
Earning Superior (3.4-3.71 GPA) honors for the Rams were junior Timmy Will (Surfside, Fla./Miami Beach Sr.) and freshman Martin de Jong (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Polytechnic), while junior Luke Forand (Towson, Md./Loyola Blakefield), sophomore Tom Conroy (Annapolis, Md./DeMatha) and freshmen Brian Jucas (Chicago, Ill./St. Ignatius College Prep), Mark Connor (San Juan Capistrano, Calif/Santa Margarita Catholic), and Scott Nemecek (Western Springs, Ill./Lyons Township) were placed on the Excellent level (3.2-3.4 GPA).
Athletes were nominated by their coach/sports information director and were active participants on the team and a full-time student at the institution which nominated them. Further, each student-athlete achieved a 3.2 cumulative Grade Point Average or higher based on the most recent grades posted through the fall semester of the 2007-08 academic year.
Twenty-four athletes earned Outstanding honors, while 40 received Superior and 37 garnered Excellent accolades as the All-Academic recipients averaged a 3.51 grade point average.
Will, who was also named to the All-Academic Team in 2006, served as the starting goalie for Fordham in 2007, recording 205 saves and 50 steals in net while dishing out 12 assists in 26 games.
de Jong appeared in all 26 games as a freshman, notching two goals and six assists for eight points and added five steals.
Forand played in every game for the Rams for the season straight season, finishing with three goals and seven assist for 10 points. He also added nine steals.
Conroy, who was also named to the All-Academic Team in 2006, appeared in all 26 games for Fordham in 2007, notching five goals and one assist for six points while also contributing 13 steals.
Jucas appeared in 25 games as a freshman for Fordham, recording 18 goals and one assist for 19 points. His 18 goals tied him for sixth best on the team while he also chipped in with five steals.
Connor saw action in 23 games as a freshman, notching two goals and six assists for eight points and added four steals.
Nemecek played in 23 games in his first season at Fordham, and came on strong late in the season. He tallied five goals and nine assists for 14 points, while adding 11 steals.
The Rams closed out the year with an 11-15 overall record and the Rams placed sixth at the Northern Division Playoffs in November.
