FAIRFAX, Va. – Senior rower Nicole Van Oort made history Thursday when she became the first female student-athlete ever at George Mason University to earn Google Cloud First Team Academic All-America® honors.
The award caps an extraordinary career for Van Oort, who graduated in May as one of the most decorated student-athletes in school history. A two-time Google Cloud Academic All-District pick, Van Oort now becomes just the 12th student-athlete in Patriot annals to earn Academic All-America honors.
Other members of the women's at-large first team announced Thursday include 5-time swimming Olympic Gold Medalist/15-time World Champion Katie Ledecky (Stanford), 10-time NCAA Champion and 2018 NCAA Swimmer of the Year Ella Eastin (Stanford), NCAA rifle runner-up finisher Elizabeth Gratz (West Virginia), NCAA skiing giant slalom runner-up finisher Katharine Irwin (New Mexico), and 2017 National Champion in tennis, Josie Kuhlman (Florida).
Van Oort joins Art Kulans (2002, Men's Volleyball), Chris Looze (2005, Baseball) and Richard Edgar (2009, Men's Soccer) as the only student-athletes from Mason named to an Academic All-America First Team.
"Nicole puts an All-America level of effort into everything she does, so I am thrilled so see her rewarded with such a historic honor," head coach Ted Nagorsen said. "Seeing Nicole's name alongside Olympic gold medalists and NCAA champions is incredible and I'm so proud of her. She's been an outstanding ambassador for George Mason throughout her career and she will continue to be as a successful alumna of this institution."
A total of 45 female Div. I student-athletes from across the nation earned Academic All-America® At-Large accolades, with 15 – including Van Oort - making a spot on the first team. The at-large category includes beach volleyball, bowling, rowing, fencing, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming & diving, tennis, water polo.
To be eligible for Google Cloud Academic All-District® and All-America® consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at her/his/they're current institution and be nominated by her/his/they're sports information director.
A three-time George Mason Provost Scholar and two-time Atlantic 10 All-Academic selection, Van Oort graduated in May with a 4.0 GPA and a degree in mathematics.
As a senior, Van Oort did the nearly unthinkable by rowing as a lightweight in Mason's heavyweight Varsity 8+. She managed the important bow position and led the Patriots to their best ever A-10 finish in May. During her sophomore and junior seasons, Van Oort led the Second Varsity 8+ to a pair of A-10 petite final gold medals and served in the stroke position. This past May, Van Oort also partnered with teammate Emily Holt to earn a bronze medal in the Women's Pair race at the prestigious Dad Vail Regatta in Philadelphia.
All-Time George Mason University Google Cloud Academic All-Americans®
1990 – Robert Bailey, Men's Volleyball (Second Team)
1992 – Jason Robertson, Men's Volleyball (Third Team)
1992 – Kimberly Saddic, Women's Track and Field (Second Team)
1996 – Keri Chaconas, Women's Basketball (Third Team)
2002 – Art Kulans, Men's Volleyball (Second Team)
2003 – Art Kulans, Men's Volleyball (First Team)
2005 – Chris Looze, Baseball (First Team)
2009 – Richard Edgar, Men's Soccer (First Team)
2016 – Jennifer Nakamura, Women's Track and Field (Third Team)
2017 – Tyler Zombro, Baseball (Third Team)
2017 – John Seals, Track and Field (Third Team)
2017 – Emily Littell, Women's Soccer (Second Team)
2017 CoSIDA Academic All-America® Division I Women's?At-Large Teams
FIRST TEAM
Nele Albers, Fordham (Swimming) – 4.00 GPA/Computer Science
Mackenzie Brannan, Alabama (Gymnastics) – 4.00 GPA/Psychology
Danielle Breen, Nebraska (Gymnastics) – 4.00 GP/Accounting
Stephanie Call, Tulsa (Rowing) – 4.00 GPA/Chemical Engineering
Ines Delpech, Kent State (Field Hockey) – 4.00 GPA/Sociology
Gabriella Di Domizio, Iona (Lacrosse) – 4.00 GPA/ACS Chemistry
Ella Eastin, Stanford (Swimming) – 3.75 GPA/Human Biology
Madison Glennie, Drake (Golf) – 4.00 GPA/English, Politics & Society
Elizabeth Gratz, West Virginia (Rifle) – 4.00 GPA/Sport & Exercise Psychology
Katharine Irwin, New Mexico (Skiing) – 4.10 GPA/Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Josie Kuhlman, Florida (Tennis) – 4.00 GPA/Public Relations
Katie Ledecky, Stanford (Swimming) – 3.99 GPA/Psychology
Hannah Moore, NC State (Swimming) – 4.00 GPA/Nutrition Science
Sydney Zupan, Missouri State (Swimming) – 4.00 GPA/Cell & Molecular Biology
