CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – Navy junior Megan Hanson was selected as the 2018 Patriot League Women’s Rowing Scholar-Athlete of the Year and is one of 11 student-athletes to earn Academic All-Patriot League Team accolades, announced on Thursday by the League office.
Navy, Lehigh and MIT’s each placed two student-athletes on the Academic All-Patriot League team while Boston University, Georgetown, Holy Cross and Loyola Maryland rounded out the field placing one student-athlete on the team.
Hanson sat in the sixth seat of Navy’s Varsity Eight boat throughout the season and during the Patriot League Championship. She helped guide the Mids to a first-place finish in the Varsity Eight Grand Final at the Patriot League Championships to earn 2018 Patriot League Boat of the Year honors. The Mids finished first overall with a grand total of 50 points.
A mathematics major with an economics focus, Hanson accumulated a 3.92 grade-point average through five semesters to earn her first Academic All-Patriot League accolade. The Colorado native is the seventh Navy women’s rower to earn the Patriot League Women’s Rowing Scholar-Athlete of the Year with the last coming in 2016 from Kathleen Heinbach, who also earned the accolade the season prior in 2015. Hanson was a 2018 first-team All-Patriot League selection and was a CRCA All-Region second-team and scholar-athlete in 2017. She has been named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll in 2016 and 2017. Hanson ranked fourth in the USNA Class of 2019 in overall Order of Merit as well as 18th in Military Order of Merit.
Joining Hanson on the Academic All-League team for the second-straight year include Boston University junior Emma Quirk (earth and environmental science, 3.72) and Lehigh senior Elise Fredericks (marketing, 3.86).
Earning their first Academic All-Patriot League accolades are Bucknell senior Caroline Bixby (international relations and Spanish, 3.72), Georgetown senior Lily Tyndall (American studies, 3.85), Holy Cross junior Tyler Sparling (biology, 3.96), Lehigh sophomore Sarah Boyer (materials science and engineering, 3.91), Loyola Maryland junior Rhys Schueren (communications/advertising & public relations, 3.91), MIT senior Abbey Diener (chemical biological engineering, 3.76), MIT junior Caitlin McCandler (materials science and engineering, 4.00) and Navy junior Mady Malczynski (operations research, 3.66).
To be eligible for the Scholar-Athlete of the Year award and the Academic All-Patriot League Team, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative grade-point average and be a starter or key player in his/her sport. Freshmen or students in their first academic year at their school are not eligible for the honor.
The Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year for each individual sport comprises the pool of nominees for the Patriot League Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards given out over the summer. One male and one female are selected for this honor.
2018 Patriot League Women’s Rowing Scholar-Athlete: Megan Hanson, Navy
Women’s Rowing Academic All-League
Emma Quirk, Boston University, Jr. (earth and environmental science, 3.74)
Caroline Bixby, Bucknell, Sr. (international relations and Spanish, 3.73)
Lily Tyndall, Georgetown, Sr. (American studies, 3.85)
Tyler Sparling, Holy Cross, Jr. (biology, 3.96)
Elise Fredericks, Lehigh, Sr. (marketing, 3.86)
Sarah Boyer, Lehigh, So. (materials science and engineering, 3.91)
Rhys Schueren, Loyola Maryland, Jr. (communications/advertising & public relations, 3.91)
Abbey Diener, MIT, Sr. (chemical biological engineering, 3.76)
Caitlin McCandler, MIT, Jr. (materials science and engineering, 4.00)
Megan Hanson, Navy, Jr. (mathematics w/ economics, 3.92)
Mady Malczynski, Navy, Jr. (operations research, 3.66)
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its third decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.