Sophomore Brenna Martini of the Adelphi University softball program and Matteo Cannavera of the men’s tennis team highlight 22 selections to the Northeast-10 Conference Spring Academic All-Conference list by being selected as the Sport Excellence Award Winners for their respective sports.
Martini earned the Sport Excellence Award for softball by posting a 3.7 GPA as a physical and health education major. Earning the award as just a sophomore, the Fairfield native adds the honor to also being named an Academic First Team All-American as well as the league’s Player of the Year among many other accolades. Martini batted .400 this year that included a single season program record 14 home runs.
A two-time NE-10 Player of the Year, Cannavera garnered the men’s tennis Sport Excellence Award behind a GPA of 3.783 as a finance major. Earning the top individual honor as a freshman and sophomore to begin his Panther career, the Italy native posted an 8-3 overall singles record this year that included a 5-0 conference mark.
Each of the league’s 15 member institutions had at least one Academic All-Conference choice. Adelphi had the most student-athletes recognized with 22, followed by Stonehill’s 14 and Bentley’s 10. Le Moyne had nine honorees, while Franklin Pierce, Merrimack, Pace and Southern New Hampshire each had seven apiece. The sport of women’s lacrosse had the most selections with 18, while women’s outdoor track & field was right behind with 17, softball had 14 and baseball had 13.
Three schools had multiple Sport Excellence Award winners, as Le Moyne led the way with three. Adelphi and Merrimack both had a pair of award winners, while American International, Franklin Pierce and Stonehill each had one.
To be eligible for selection to the Northeast-10 Academic All-Conference teams, a student-athlete must have met or exceeded the following minimum requirements: 1) participated in at least half of the team’s competitions and been either a starter or significant contributor; 2) achieved a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale); and 3) completed at least one academic year at his/her current institution.
—Submitted by the Adelphi University Athletic Department
