Three Wolverines on Academic All-America At-Large Teams
6/9/2016 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Swimming & Diving, Women's Gymnastics, Water Polo
June 9, 2016
AUSTIN, Texas -- The College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) released its 2016 Academic All-America At-Large teams Thursday (June 9) with the University of Michigan's PJ Ransford (men's swimming & diving) on the men's second team and Nicole Artz (women's gymnastics) and Ali Thomason (water polo) both on the women's third team.
It is the third straight year that Michigan has had three or more at-large Academic All-America selections. All three individuals in 2016 also earned All-America recognition or All-America honorable mention in their respective sports.
Ransford, a sophomore from Pittsford, New York, is enrolled in the College of Engineering with a mechanical engineering major. He extended the streak for men's swimming and diving to four straight years with an Academic All-America selection and is the sixth in program history to receive the honor, joining Brent Lang (1989), Brian Gunn (1993), Connor Jaeger (2013-14), Richard Funk (2015) and Justin Glanda (2015).
This season Ransford won the 1,650-yard freestyle at the Big Ten Championships and earned NCAA All-America honorable mention in the same event at the NCAA Championships. An Academic All-Big Ten selection this year, he was one of 12 winter honorees across the entire conference to have maintained an unblemished cumulative GPA. Ransford is a member of the 2015-16 U.S. National Team and will swim at U.S. Olympic Trials with the goal of qualifying for the Olympic Games in Rio.
Artz, a junior from Holland, Michigan, is an elementary education major and the first Academic All-American for the women's gymnastics program since Janessa Grieco made the third team in 2003. Beth Amelkovich was a two-time Academic All-American in 1997 (third team) and 1999 (second team), and Beth Wymer made the third team in 1995.
In 2016 Artz was an NCAA All-America selection (second team) on floor exercise. She won an NCAA Regional championship on balance beam and Big Ten individual titles on beam and floor. A first team All-Big Ten selection and Academic All-Big Ten honoree, Artz finished the season ranked in the top 10 nationally in the all-around, beam and floor. She received the Bates/Deskins Award, given annually to the top junior student-athlete at the University of Michigan.
Thomason, a senior from San Rafael, California, is the first Academic All-America selection in the 16 years of the Michigan water polo program.
A two-year captain majoring in neuroscience with a minor in creative writing, Thomason was named an ACWPC first team All-American on June 2. The CWPA Player of the Year and CWPA Championship MVP will be taking the MCAT this summer with plans on attending medical school after she finishes her degree in the fall. An All-CWPA first team selection for the second straight year, Thomason set the Michigan single-season goals record (94) and led the Wolverines to their best finish in program history with fourth place at the NCAA Championship.
Student-athletes eligible for the women's at-large team are from beach volleyball, bowling, rowing, fencing, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming and diving, tennis, and water polo. Men's at-large sports include fencing, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming and diving, tennis, volleyball, water polo, and wrestling.
Michigan has totaled five Academic All-America selections so far in 2015-16 as the three at-large honorees join Sara Driesenga from softball (first team) and Cody Bruder from baseball (second team). The track & field/cross country selections will be announced June 24.
• Michigan's Academic All-Americans
Communications Contacts: Ben Blevins, Brad Rudner
Players Mentioned
