LOWELL, Mass. – The UMass Lowell ice hockey team had 25 players named to the 2023-24 Hockey East All-Academic Team, giving them the top spot in the Hockey East, as announced by the conference office on Tuesday.
"Our players continued to excel in the classroom this past season," said Head Coach
Norm Bazin. "I am very impressed with the level of consistency in both semesters from the freshmen right up to the seniors. Job well done by all involved."
To be eligible for the All-Academic Team, student-athletes must attain a 3.0 GPA or higher. Maine and Vermont each shared the second-most honorees in the Hockey East with 24, while Massachusetts and Northeastern were just behind with 22 honorees each.
Leading the way for the River Hawks were sophomore defenseman
Mark Cooper (Cambridge, Ontario) and freshman forward
Jonathan Horn (Southbury, Conn.), who both earned Hockey East All-Academic All-Star Team honors for compiling the highest GPA at their position. Cooper concluded the year with a 3.97 GPA in Quantitative Economics, while Horn finished the year with a 4.0 GPA, as he pursues a degree in Business Administration. This marks the second consecutive year that Cooper has been named to the All-Academic All-Star Team, doing so in his freshman season last year.
Six different River Hawks joined the Hockey East All-Academic team for the third time of their career in juniors
Owen Cole (Dunnville, Ontario,
Isac Jonsson (Angelholm, Sweden) and
Edvard Nordlund (Nacka, Sweden), as well as seniors
Brehdan Engum (Burnsville, Minn.),
Ben Meehan (Walpole, Mass.) and
Henry Welsch (Lakeville, Minn.). Cole, Jonsson and Nordlund have now earned the honor in each of their three years at UMass Lowell.
Five sophomores also collected their second All-Academic honor, making it two-for-two in their young careers. Those players include
Mitchell Becker (Rogers, Minn.),
Dillan Bentley (Peoria, Ill.),
Jack Collins (Canton, N.Y.),
TJ Schweighardt (Manahawkin, N.J.) and
Scout Truman (Lethbridge, Alberta). Joining them as two-time members of the All-Academic Team are juniors
Matt Crasa (South Setauket, N.Y.) and
Luke Pavicich (Clarence Center, N.Y.), as well as senior
Jake Stella (Karlstad, Sweden) and graduate student Filip Fornåå Svensson (Linköping, Sweden).
Rounding out the list of honorees are the All-Academic first-timers. In addition to Horn, that list includes freshmen
Ben Brunette (North Bay, Ontario),
Adam Cardona (Beaconsfield, Quebec), Sean Killcullen (Kensington, Md.),
Jaiden Moriello (Saugus, Mass.) and
Shawn O'Donnell (Crescent, Pa.), as well as junior
Stefan Owens (Midlothian, Va.) and graduate students
Nick Granowicz (Macomb, Mich.) and
Alex Peterson (Collegeville, Pa.).
A total of 202 total student-athletes across the league were included on the Hockey East All-Academic Team after posting a 3.0 GPA or higher during the 2023-24 season.
Full List of 2023-24 UMass Lowell Hockey East All-Academic Honorees
Mitchell Becker **
Dillan Bentley **
Ben Brunette
Adam Cardona
Owen Cole ***
Jack Collins **
Mark Cooper **^
Matt Crasa **
Brehdan Engum ***
Filip Fornaa Svensson **
Nick Granowicz
Jonathan Horn ^
Isac Jonsson ***
Sean Kilcullen
Ben Meehan ***
Jaiden Moriello
Edvard Nordlund ***
Shawn O'Donnell
Stefan Owens
Luke Pavicich **
Alex Peterson
TJ Schweighardt **
Jake Stella **
Scout Truman **
Henry Welsch ***
** two-time honoree
*** three-time honoree
^ Top Scholar Athlete (Highest GPA in Hockey East)
+ Distinguished Scholar (3.0 in each semester of four varsity seasons)
! Five-time Honoree
