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MIAC announces 2023 fall sport Elite 22 winners

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) recognized some of its best and brightest fall sport student-athletes on Wednesday with the announcement of the golf, cross country, soccer, volleyball, and football Elite 22 Awards.
 
Bethel's Jacob Hall and Greta McArthur were the recipients of the men's and women's golf Elite 22 awards, with Macalester's Reece McKee joining Saint Benedict's Fiona Smith as the award recipients for men's and women's cross country. Soccer's Elite 22 awards went to Macalester's Ian Staresinic and St. Catherine's Mallory Johnson, while Saint Benedict's Olivia Thompson and Bethel's Aaron Ellingson were awarded in volleyball and football, respectively.
 
The MIAC Elite 22 Award recognizes the true essence of the term "student-athlete" by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the conference championship level in their sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among their peers. Modeled after the NCAA Elite 90 Award, the MIAC Elite 22 Award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest grade-point average (GPA) in each sport who meets similarly high, sport-specific athletic requirements.
 
In all sports with MIAC team postseason tournaments, including volleyball and soccer, the MIAC Elite 22 Award is presented to the individual with the highest GPA on the active postseason roster of a playoff-qualifying team. The MIAC Elite 22 Football Award is presented to the individual nominated for the honor with the highest GPA who helped their team reach the MIAC championship game. For cross country, the honor is bestowed upon the individual with the highest GPA among the top 15 individual finishers at the conference championship meet, while the accolade in golf is presented to the individual with the highest GPA among the top 10 individual finishers at the MIAC Championships. Each winner must be a junior or senior and in at least their second full academic year at their current institution. Ties are broken by the number of credits earned at their institution.
 
Ellingson (Jr. | St. Louis Park, Minn.) ran for 902 yards and eight touchdowns to go along with 374 receiving yards and a pair of scores in 10 games for the MIAC champion Royals. He is a business major with a 3.97 GPA at Bethel.
 
Hall (Jr. | Dressner, Wis. | Osceola) was the individual runner-up at the 2023 MIAC Men's Golf Championships with a three-round score of 212 (-4), helping the Royals capture the second conference title in program history. Hall has a 3.97 GPA while majoring in biology at Bethel.
 
Johnson (Sr. | Farmington, Minn.) started all but one regular season game for the Wildcats in 2023, scoring one goal from her center-back position and helping St. Kate's to a third straight MIAC Playoff title and NCAA Tournament berth. She is a nursing major with a 4.0 GPA at St. Catherine.
 
McArthur (Jr. | Fargo, N.D. | Shanley) placed seventh individually at the 2023 MIAC Women's Golf Championships with a three-round score of 239 (+23), earning All-Championship Team distinction for the third time in her career. She has a 3.96 GPA while majoring in business and political science at Bethel.
 
McKee (Jr. | Charlottesville, Va.) crossed the finish line in 25:26.6 to place 14th overall and earn All-Conference honors at the 2023 MIAC Men's Cross Country Championships. McKee has a 4.0 GPA while majoring in geography at Macalester.
 
Smith (Sr. | Dhahran, Saudi Arabia) shattered the MIAC women's 6K record with a time of 19:55.5 to win her third straight conference title at the 2023 MIAC Women's Cross Country Championships. Smith is a 4.0 mathematics major at Saint Benedict. She also won the Elite 22 award for women's cross country in 2022.
 
Staresinic (Jr. | Middleton, Wis.) started all 19 games and scored one goal from his midfielder position for the Scots in 2023. He is a biology major with a 3.98 GPA.
 
Thompson (Sr. | Palm Harbor, Fla. | East Lake) collected 53 kills in 43 sets to go along with 47 digs and five service aces as an outside hitter for the Bennies in 2023. She has a 3.98 GPA as a biochemistry major at Saint Benedict.
 
A physical award will be provided to the winners to commemorate their MIAC Elite 22 Award. The conference also recognizes past honorees on the MIAC Elite 22 Award web page.
 
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