CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – Recent American University field hockey graduate Natalie Konerth was selected as the Corvias Patriot League Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year on Tuesday in a vote conducted by the athletics communications staffs at each of the Patriot League institutions.
The Corvias Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year has been presented annually to one male and one female student-athlete since the 1991-92 academic year. Those who are named Scholar-Athlete of the Year in their respective sports – as Konerth was in field hockey – are eligible for the honor. The Corvias Patriot League Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year honoree will be announced on Wednesday morning.
Konerth, a two-time Patriot League Field Hockey Scholar-Athlete of the Year, graduated in May with a B.S. in applied mathematics and a 4.0 final cumulative grade point average (GPA). She earned 2016 CoSIDA Academic All-America honors and is a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-District 2. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, the national honor society in addition to a three-time National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Scholar of Distinction and four-time Patriot League Academic Honor Roll selection.
On the field, Konerth earned unanimous First Team All-Patriot League honors for the second consecutive season after finishing second in the League in goals (14) and points (29). Konerth was particularly impactful during League play, scoring eight goals in six games, before helping the Eagles to the program’s 10th League championship and first since 2013. She earned All-Tournament honors for her play. In the NCAA Tournament, Konerth scored the game-winning goal in American’s first round victory over Kent State. Her strong play during the 2016 season helped her earn 2016 First Team Mid-Atlantic Region and a spot on the U.S. National Development Squad.
At American, Konerth co-authored a technical paper for the mathematics department. She also spent a summer prior to her senior season doing an intensive research project with the chair of AU’s Department of Mathematics and Statistics.
Konerth is the fourth woman from American University to earn Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, joining volleyball’s Karla Kucerkova (2003, 2004) and women’s basketball’s Jen Dumiak (2015). She is just the second field hockey player to earn the honor, joining current Lafayette women’s lacrosse Head Coach Alison Fisher, who won in 2000.
The winner of each sport’s Corvias Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year award is eligible to earn male or female scholar-athlete of the year honors, with the League’s sports information directors selecting one male and one female for the award. The other candidates for the Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year award include American senior Lauren Crisler (women’s basketball), Army West Point senior Kelly Hamilton (women’s swimming & diving), Boston University senior Adela Cejnarova (women’s golf) and sophomore Remi Ramos (women’s tennis), Bucknell senior Christine Bendzinski (women’s indoor and outdoor track & field) and junior Kendall Ham (women’s soccer), Georgetown senior Christina Johnson (women’s rowing), Holy Cross junior Hannah Jeter (women’s cross country), Lehigh junior Carolyn Wright (softball), Loyola Maryland senior Bailey Mathis (women’s lacrosse) and Navy sophomore Patricia Mattingly (women’s volleyball).
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.