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MIAC announces nominees for DIIICA Awards

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its nominees for the Division III Commissioners Association (DIIICA) Student-Athletes of the Year awards on Wednesday.
 
Saint John’s Zach Frank and Bethel’s Ellie Hernes were selected from an exceptional pool of MIAC candidates to represent the conference as its nominees for the 2025-26 DIIICA Men’s and Women’s Student-Athletes of the Year.
 
Frank (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial) was a two-time All-American and three-time All-MIAC selection who was voted the 2025 MIAC Mike Stam Award recipient as the top lineman in MIAC Football last season. He led the Johnnies in tackles for loss (17.0), sacks (13.0), and quarterback hurries (7) in 12 games. Frank ended his SJU career ranked fifth in program history in sacks (28.5) and ninth in tackles for loss (40.0).
 
His work in the classroom led to five Dean’s List appearances, three Academic All-MIAC and Academic All-District nods, two Academic All-America selections, and induction into both Chi Alpha Sigma and the Hampshire Honor Society. In the community, Frank helped Saint John’s raise nearly $250,000 for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital during his playing career. He also volunteered annually with the Kids Fighting Hunger food drive and donated his time while studying abroad in London to participate in a service internship with Boxing Futures, where he helped facilitate an outreach program for at-risk youth. Those experiences guided Frank to co-found the Johnnies and Bennies in Community (JBIC) campus organization in 2025.
 
“We started the club because a few of my teammates and I felt that we could do more in the community,” Frank said. “We connected with the principal of a local elementary school and set up a program where we visited the elementary school weekly and spent time with children who needed mentoring and/or just a positive influence in their lives.”
 
Hernes (Fairmont, Minn. / Fairmont) concluded her record-breaking career at the 2026 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships after sweeping the MIAC Women’s Indoor and Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year honors in 2026. Hernes won outdoor conference titles in the long jump (5.62m) and triple jump (12.04m), along with an indoor crown in the triple jump (11.45m).
 
Off the track, Hernes graduated summa cum laude with a degree in nursing. She was a three-time Academic All-MIAC and U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic honoree. Hernes’ academic excellence led to her induction into Chi Alpha Sigma in 2025 and her selection to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District team in 2026. Hernes has volunteered her time and talents with Special Olympics Minnesota throughout her collegiate career, and assisted with the Special Olympics USA Games earlier this year. She is also active in her local community, volunteering with the Hiawatha Collegiate Academy High School food shelf, Woodland Hills Church, and several service-minded activities on the Bethel campus.
 
“My experiences as a scholar, athlete, and leader have all pointed me toward the same purpose: serving others with humility and compassion,” Hernes said. “They have taught me that leadership begins by recognizing the inherent worth of another person and choosing to invest in them.”
 
Frank and Hernes were among six extremely deserving student-athletes nominated for the DIIICA Awards. Other institutional nominees included Bethel’s Grant Nelson (men’s track & field), Macalester’s Nick Kent (men’s soccer), Saint Benedict’s Ellie Peterson (softball), St. Catherine’s Helen McKinnon (softball), and St. Olaf’s Isabel Wyatt (women’s track & field).
 
This is the fourth year of the DIIICA awards, which recognize graduating student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in the areas of academic achievement, athletic excellence, service, and leadership. Voting is conducted by the commissioners within each of the ten regions, with the top men's sport and women's sport honorees recognized as finalists for the Awards Committee to select the Division III Commissioner's Association Men's Sport and Women's Sport Student-Athlete of the Year. Regional and national honorees for both the DIIICA awards will be announced later this month.
 
| All-Time MIAC DIIICA Student-Athlete of the Year Nominees |

About the MIAC
Founded in 1920, the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is home to 13 private institutions, all of which are located within the borders of the state of Minnesota. The MIAC sponsors championships in 22 sports and is committed to upholding its four core values of Quality Athletics, Academics, Student-Athlete Well-Being, and Community.