LOWELL, MA (May 13, 2008) – The UMass Lowell hockey and women’s soccer teams were named as the recipients of the Bob Griffin Academic Cup Tuesday night at the UMass Lowell Athletics Awards Banquet.

The award is named after the late Bob Griffin, who was an avid supporter of UML athletics. Griffin passed away in 1997.

Both the men and women’s cross country teams were the runners-up, the men with a collective 2.80 grade point average and the women with a 3.22 average.

The honor marks the third time in four years that the hockey team was presented with the Cup as it has maintained a collective grade point average of 3.064. The hockey team, which was a finalist for the honor last year, captured the 2005-06 Cup with a collective 3.067 GPA and the 2004-05 title with a 3.095.

“When we recruit kids we are very explicit in saying that they are here for the reason and not just the season,” said UML Hockey Coach Blaise MacDonald. “We want high performance on and off the ice. To the players credit, they are very competitive with each other academically. It is the foundation of their future.”

After three straight years as a finalist, the women’s soccer team won the Cup this season with a 3.271.

“Above all else, this is what we talk to the players about every semester,” said UML Head Coach Elie Monteiro. “We’ve been close (to winning the Cup), but it just feels great to finally get our hands on it. It is clear that our players prioritize their academics and that is a source of tremendous pride for us.”

Academic honors have been plenty for both programs over the years. Last year, 13 members of the hockey team earned places on the Hockey East Association All-Academic team while two players – seniors Jeremy Hall (Mays Landing, NJ) and Jason Tejchma (Muskegon, MI) – received the Hockey East Distinguished Scholar Award.

In the 2005-06 season, 11 players were cited to the Hockey East All-Academic Team, preceded by a remarkable 17 players cited in 2004-05.

Last fall, the women’s soccer team placed five players on the Northeast-10 Conference All-Academic Team. Two players – seniors Katelyn Campopiano (Chelmsford, MA) and Celia Merullo (Wakefield, MA) – earned the honor for the second time in their careers.

Previously, UML vaunted six NE-10 All-Academic standouts over the 2006 and 2005 seasons.

Along with the Bob Griffin Academic Cup, 14 student-athletes received the Student-Athlete of the Year Award in their respective sports for excelling academically and on the playing field.

Highlighting the honors was junior Ruben Sanca (Boston, MA), the men’s cross country recipient named for the second straight year. A two-time All-American in the cross country and indoor track and field seasons this year, Sanca was also presented with the David J. Boutin Award for Male Student-Athlete of the Year for his athletic accomplishments, academics and leadership in the community.