Moraga, CA – With the close of the 2009 spring season, Saint Mary's had 12 players that garnered West Coast Conference All-Academic recognition, as announced by the conference office on Wednesday. Saint Mary's had four baseball players, one golfer, a rower, and six tennis players selected to the WCC All-Academic Team, as both the men's and women's tennis teams had three student-athletes selected.
The team with the most players named to the 2009 WCC Spring All-Academic Team is baseball with four. The list if baseball players include junior pitcher Scott Schneider, sophomore outfielder Justin Fazio, sophomore pitcher Taylor Reid, and redshirt freshman infielder Greg Ditmer. Schneider was drafted in the 20th round of the 2009 MLB First Year Player Draft, after posting a 6-4 record with a 4.45 ERA. Fazio, who's on the WCC All-Academic team for the second time, appeared in 47 games with 37 starts, posting a .302 batting average. Reid made 17 appearances on the mound, posting a 2-6 record, and Ditmer had a .259 batting average in 108 at-bats.
Men's golfer Robert McRae was named to the WCC All-Academic Team for the second straight year. Aside from leading the golf team with a 73.9 stroke average, McRae currently holds a 3.67 grade point average as a business administration major.
Women's rower, senior Johanna Timmer, a two-time First Team All-WCC selection, was named to the WCC All-Academic team for the second time in her career. She was selected to the academic team following her junior season, when was garnered First Team All-WCC honors in 2008.
The men's tennis team garnered three WCC All-Academic selections, in senior Achim Christner and sophomores Youssef El Bouzkouri and Lucas Tirelli. For Christner, a three-time Honorable Mention All-WCC selection, this year's all-academic selection is the second of his career. Christner was also a Second Team CoSIDA ESPN the Magazine District 8 All-Academic honoree as well. Both El Bouzkouri and Tirelli are making their first appearance on the conference's all-academic team. Its the first career post-season conference award for El Bouzkouri, while Tirelli was a First Team All-WCC in singles and doubles as a freshman and second team All-WCC in singles in 2009.
The women's tennis team also had three players selected to the academic list in seniors Erin Young and Marah Calvo and junior Neinke Strijbis. Strijbis, a Second Team All-WCC selection in doubles in 2009, earned her second WCC All-Academic selection. Both Young and Calvo earned their first WCC academic award. Young compiled a team-best winning percentage in singles, finishing with an 11-3 record, and was a perfect 7-0 against WCC opponents and went 9-1 in the Gaels' last 10 matches of the season. Calvo was an 2009 Honorable Mention All-WCC selection, after posting an 11-5 singles record during he senior season.
