University of Northern Iowa basketball player Cael Schmitt, a former Dubuque Wahlert standout, recently earned a postgraduate scholarship from the NCAA. He previously starred at Coe College.
University of Northern Iowa basketball player Cael Schmitt, a former Dubuque Wahlert standout, recently earned a postgraduate scholarship from the NCAA. He previously starred at Coe College.
University of Northern Iowa graduate student men’s basketball player Cael Schmitt’s commitment to academics led to a prestigious recognition from the NCAA last week.
The Dubuque Wahlert graduate became one of 42 athletes from the winter sports season to be recognized in the NCAA’s Postgraduate Scholarship Program.
Each year, the NCAA awards as many as 126 postgraduate scholarships to student-athletes who have completed their final year of athletic competition across all three NCAA divisions and who have demonstrated outstanding academic achievements, athletic excellence and leadership within their communities. The NCAA distributes the scholarships following the fall, winter and spring seasons and provides just 21 scholarships each to men and women per season.
The one-time, nonrenewable scholarship supports graduate study at an accredited institution. The NCAA evaluates candidates on athletic and academic achievements, campus involvement, community service and leadership.
Schmitt led Coe College to the 2023 and 2024 NCAA Division III basketball tournaments and its first NCAA win in more than 40 seasons last spring. A four-time first-team all-American Rivers Conference performer and a two-time A-R-C Defensive Player of the Year, he earned D3hoops.com West Region Rookie of the Year in 2021 and landed NABC All-District and D3hoops.com All-Region honors in 2024 before deciding to use a fifth year of eligibility at Northern Iowa. The A-R-C named him as a finalist for its prestigious Duane Schroeder Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award.
Schmitt averaged 4.4 points per game in 15 appearances with the Panthers after suffering an early season knee injury. Schmitt shot 35.5% from the field, including 35.9% from beyond the 3-point arc while at UNI.
Butcher shines on UNI 4×4 team —Western Dubuque graduate Zack Butcher helped the University of Northern Iowa men’s 4×400 relay run a 3:06 this weekend at Iowa State University. The Panthers earned a berth in the NCAA regional meet with the time, which currently ranks 17th in the country.
Creasy named A-R-C co-female athlete of week — The American Rivers Conference selected Loras College’s Harmony Creasy as its co-female athlete of the week and field performer of the week on Monday. The Davenport, Iowa, native was named Most Valuable Field Performer at the A-R-C meet hosted by Simpson College after making the podium three times. She finished second in the long jump (5.51 meters), second in the triple jump (11.77 meters) and ran on the winning 4×100 relay team that posted a season-best time of 46.72.
Patterson earns A-R-C weekly honor — The A-R-C selected the University of Dubuque’s Otis Patterson as its co-male athlete of the week and track performer of the week following his efforts at the A-R-C meet. The Chicago native earned the A-R-C Most Valuable Track Performer award after winning two titles and taking second in another event. Patterson won the 400 meters with a time of 47.30, finished second in the 200 in 21.36 and ran on the Spartans’ 4×400 relay team that set a facility record of 3:11.49.
12 local tennis players honored for academics — A dozen locally trained tennis players earned academic all-district honors from the College Sports Communicators.
The women’s teams included: the University of Dubuque’s Adriana Benavenle; Loras College’s Dorothy Deans, Mary Breitbach, Elise Kalina and Caroline Hutchinson; Luther College’s Riley O’Donnell; and Wartburg College’s Natalie Kaiser. Hutchinson prepped at Wahlert, while O’Donnell and Kaiser prepped at Senior.
The men’s all-district picks included: Dubuque’s Ryan Kiddle and Gavin Murrie and Loras’ Gage Becker, Samuel Canas Guerror and Andrew Day. Day prepped at Senior.
Former Hawkeye takes Buena Vista post — Buena Vista University hired former University of Iowa standout Jeff Horner as its new men’s basketball coach last week. He replaced Trevor Johnson, who resigned in April to take on a new career opportunity.
Horner most recently served as head coach at NCAA Division II Truman State University in Kirksville, Mo., for seven seasons. He compiled an overall record of 121-78 which included an 86-50 mark within the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
The Mason City, Iowa, native earned Iowa’s Mr. Basketball as a high school senior in 2002 before he went on to start at point guard for the Hawkeyes. At Iowa, he was named team MVP from 2004-06 and was a two-time all-Big Ten third-team selection.
Email College Notebook items to jim.leitner@thmedia.com
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