March 13, 2012
Atlantic 10 Release
Bronx, N.Y. -
Fordham University senior Kevin Fitzgerald (New Orleans, La./Jesuit) and junior Julian Saad (Trumbull, Conn./Trumbull) were recognized for their athletic and academic accomplishments by being named to the 2012 Atlantic 10 Academic All-Conference Team for men's indoor track and field in a vote by the conference's Sports Information Directors. This is the second career Academic All-Conference award for both as Fitzgerald was named Academic All-Conference in 2011 for indoor track and field and Saad received the accolade the past fall for cross country.
To be nominated for Academic All-Conference honors, a player must be a starter or important reserve and have a cumulative 3.0 gpa or better (on a 4.0 scale) for his/her entire academic career.
Fitzgerald, a History major, earned First Team All-Atlantic 10 honors by winning the 1000m at the 2012 Atlantic 10 Indoor Championship in a season-best time of 2:26.96 on February 18th at the University of Rhode Island. He also garnered First Team All-A-10 accolades with the winning 4x800 relay that set an Atlantic 10 conference record by winning the race in a time of 7:38.31.
Fitzgerald's accomplishments at the Atlantic 10 Championship helped the Rams to a third place finish, tying for the Rams' best-ever finish at the Championship, with 91.5 points (the team's best total at A-10's).
On the year, Fitzgerald recorded Fordham's fastest 800m (1:51.12), 1000m (2:26.96) and mile (4:05.17) times this winter as he qualified for the IC4A Championships in all three events. At the IC4A Championships in Boston on March 4th, Fitzgerald competed in the mile and with the 4x800 relay, earning All-East honors with second place finishes in both. He turned in a time of 4:05.52 in the mile, behind Connecticut's Joe Clark, who won the race in a time of 4:03.82. In the 4x800 relay, he paced the team to a second place finish in a new school record time of 7:25.29.
Saad, who was earned All-Atlantic 10 honors as well as Academic All-Conference accolades in cross country last fall, earned Second Team All-Atlantic 10 honors for the indoor season by placing second in the 3000m at the Atlantic 10 Championship in a season-best time of 8:24.43 on February 18th at the University of Rhode Island. He helped the Rams to a third place finish, tying for the Rams' best-ever finish at the Championship, with 91.5 points (the team's best total at A-10's).
On the year, Saad, a Psychology major, recorded Fordham's fastest 3000m (8:10.66) and 5000m (14:52.59) times this year. He competed in the 3000m at the IC4A Championships on March 3rd in Boston, taking sixth place in a school record time of 8:10.66, breaking his own school mark of 8:13.88, set in February at the prestigious New Balance Invitational.
