GREENWOOD, Ind. – The University of Indianapolis had a dominant showing in the 2020-21 CoSIDA Academic All-District At-Large honorees with six Greyhounds earning the prestigious award. The Hounds paced the GLVC with six overall selections while claiming four of the thirteen spots available on the women's side.
This years honorees include Renato Lima (men's tennis), Oliver Mast (men's golf), Nikol Alekseeva (women's tennis), Pilar Echeverria (women's golf), Peyton Romig (women's lacrosse) and Marizel van Jaarsveld (swimming and diving).
The Greyhounds were selected from a vast number of nominees, as both combined men's and women's at-large umbrella includes the sports of bowling, crew, fencing, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming & diving, tennis, men's volleyball, water polo and wrestling. The prestigious honor is released annually to recognize the region's top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom.
Voted on by the nation's sports information director, eligible student-athletes must have a minimum 3.30 cumulative GPA and have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution. Academic All-District® honorees move on to the Google Cloud Academic All-America® ballot, with national winners released next month.
For the fourth consecutive season Renato Lima brought home All-GLVC honors. The 2020-21 campaign saw the senior claim the ITA DII Midwest Regional double title while finishing second in singles action. Lima led the Hounds to a 19-4 record with their fifth Midwest Regional Championship title and their second ever National Semifinal appearance. The Sao Paulo, Brazil native carries a 3.90 GPA, double majoring in Finance and Business Administration & Management.
Oliver Mast was voted the GLVC Player of the Year for the second time in three seasons, becoming just the sixth multi-year winner. He was also named the GLVC Paragon Award recipient as the league's top senior student-athlete as well as the GLVC Men's Golf Scholar Athlete of the Year. The Fortville, Ind. native owns the sixth-lowest career scoring average in UIndy history at 73.7. Mast placed sixth at Regionals this past spring and later helped the Hounds to their first semifinal appearance at the NCAA DII Championships. Mast was named to the GCAA All-Region Team, and is eligible for the All-America ballot. He carries a 3.70 GPA, studying Business Administration and Management.
Nikol Alekseeva guided women's tennis to a stellar 23-1 season with program's fifth Midwest Region Championship and their first ever appearance in the DII National Championship. Alekseeva was the 2020 ITA Midwest Region Singles and Doubles Champion as well as played an integral part of the 2021 ITA National Indoor Champion team. Alekseeva garnered national attention with the ITA Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award while also being named the GLVC Women's Tennis Scholar Athlete of the Year. The Moscow, Russia native is double majoring in Marketing and Business Administration while boasting a 3.90 GPA.
Pilar Echeverria will go down as the most decorated Hounds in women's golf history. She closes her career with two-straight GLVC Women's Golf Scholar Athlete of the Year selections plus five consecutive WGCA All-America nods. The Guatemala City native guided the Hounds to a national quarterfinal appearance while carrying a 73.6 scoring average. Echeverria posted eight top-five finishes with two wins in 11 tournaments. She carries a 3.95 GPA while pursuing a master's degree in Data Analytics.
Peyton Romig guided women's lacrosse to their third straight conference title this year, earning the program's third NCAA tournament appearance in its short history. The Carthage, N.Y. native corralled 200 draw controls to lead all of Division II. She finished her UIndy career atop the record books with 676 draw controls while tied for 6th with 114 points. This season along the midfielder was named GLVC First Team, GLVC Midfielder of the Year, US Lacrosse Magazine All-America First Team, IWLCA All-Region First Team, IWLCA All-America First Team, IWLCA Midfielder of the Year, and IWLCA National Player of the Year. She was also a DII Honda Athlete of the Year Finalist. Romig is studying Exercise Science and Psychology with a 3.45 GPA.
Marizel van Jaarsveld was a seven-time All-American in 2021 alone, bringing home national titles in both the 200 IM and 400 free relay. She placed in the top four in three other individual events: 3rd in 200 fly, 4th in 100 free and 4th in 100 IM. The South Africa native helped UIndy to national runner-up stats in the 800 free relay and a 4th place finish in the 400 medley relay. She posted six top-three finishes at the 2021 GLVC Championships including two individual titles in the 100 free and 200 fly. van Jaarsveld currently holds four school records in the 200 fly, 200 IM, 400 freestyle relay and 800 freestyle relay. A CSCAA DII Scholar All-American, she carries a 3.88 GPA in Psychology.
All six Greyhounds are now eligible to earn CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, which will be announced at a later date.
