NAPERVILLE – Six student-athletes from the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) were announced as members of the Academic All-America® at-large team, selected by College Sports Communicators on July 9.
 
Illinois Wesleyan men’s golfers Juney Bai, Quinn Clifford and Griffin Pohl were selected for the First Team. Loras men’s volleyball student-athlete Corey Mayotte landed on the Second Team, while IWU men’s lacrosse members Billy McHugh and Sam Weinberg joined North Central men’s wrestling student-athlete Casey Aikman on the Third Team.
 
Fifteen honorees on the Academic All-America® Division III at-large teams boast a perfect 4.0 GPA in their undergraduate work or graduate school. The 15-man first team has an average GPA of 3.94, with the entire 46-man team combining for a collective 3.88 GPA.
 
Bai shared the CCIW Elite 26 Award with Clifford for the second straight season. He earned All-CCIW and GCAA PING All-Region honors in his junior season. Bai played in 11 tournaments, compiling an average of 73.4 strokes per round over 31 rounds of competition. The Mokena, Ill. native picked up the second win of his career, March 23, topping the field at the Jekyll Island Collegiate Individual Tournament, where he notched a career-low 54-hole tally of 213. Bai capped off a strong season with a 29th-place finish at the NCAA Division III National Championship, carding a career-best 72-hole score of 298 (70-78-74-76).
 
Clifford boasted a 4.00 GPA during his undergraduate career. A three-time CCIW Elite 26 Award recipient, Clifford shared the honor alongside Bai each of the past two seasons. Competing in 11 tournaments this year, he posted an average of 72.8 strokes per round over 31 rounds. He earned All-CCIW honors and was named to the Golf Coaches Association of America PING All-Region squad. Outside of competition, Clifford was recognized as a NACDA Allstate Good Works Spring Team nominee and IWU's CCIW Merle Chapman Award recipient. He concludes his career with the fifth-best career scoring average, checking in at 73.45 over 98 career rounds.
 
Pohl was voted a PING Second Team All-American by the GCAA, turning in a career-best 72.1 scoring average over 31 rounds in his senior season as the CCIW Men's Golfer of the Year. He tied the program's single-round to-par record with an eight-under 64 at the Take Back the Night Challenge, April 25, and scored a hole-in-one en route to taking home medalist honors at the Wabash Fall Invitational, Oct. 7-8. He tied for the team lead with 16 rounds of par-or-better. After placing runner-up at the CCIW Championship to earn all-conference honors, Pohl grabbed seventh-place at the NCAA Division III Championship. 
 
McHugh was was tabbed First Team All-CCIW and United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Blatant Division III All-American Honorable Mention. He accrued 22 caused turnovers, the ninth-most in single season program history, and added 40 ground balls. He totaled 13 points on 10 goals and three helpers, while studying economics and maintaining a 4.00 GPA.
 
Mayotte owns a 3.72 GPA in sports management at Loras. He was voted CCIW Offensive Student-Athlete of the Year in April, becoming the league’s second repeat winner. The Geneva, Ill. native finished the campaign as the national leader in kills per set (5.35) and points per set (6.03). He also ranked 21st in Division III with a .388 hitting percentage and 23rd with 0.48 service aces per set.
 
Weinberg notched the third-most goals on the team, scoring 29 times, and posted 11 assists en route to 40 points. His six man-up goals led the team, while he tacked on 34 ground balls and 10 caused turnovers. A Second Team All-CCIW honoree, Weinberg graduated with the fifth-most man-up goals in program laurels. He earned his degree in neuroscience, finishing his collegiate career with a 3.83 GPA.
 
A two-time Academic All-District selection, Aikman is North Central's first men's wrestling Academic All-America honoree since Nathan Fitzenreider earned the distinction in 2013. Aikman, an exercise science major, posted a 27-8 record this season with 13 tech falls, the second most on the team. He won the CCIW Championship at 197 pounds with a 9-7 decision over Jackson Punzel of Wheaton College, and placed fourth at the Lower Midwest Regional Championship at 197 pounds.
 
First Team
Juney Bai, Illinois Wesleyan Men’s Golf
Quinn Clifford, Illinois Wesleyan Men’s Golf
Griffin Pohl, Illinois Wesleyan Men’s Golf
 
Second Team
Corey Mayotte, Loras Men’s Volleyball
 
Third Team
Bill McHugh, Illinois Wesleyan Men’s Golf
Sam Weinberg, Illinois Wesleyan Men’s Golf
Casey Aikman, North Central Men’s Wrestling

Illinois Wesleyan and North Central athletics communications contributed to this release.