GRAND FORKS, N.D. – Senior defenseman Nick Mattson was named the University of North Dakota's representative on the 2014-15 All-National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Scholar-Athlete Team, announced today by the conference office.
The NCHC Scholar-Athlete Team consists of one student-athlete from each of the eight NCHC institutions. Each school selected their recipient based on criteria that included having at least a 3.50 grade-point average and having competed in at least 50 percent of their teams' games this season. Scholar-Athlete Team representatives also demonstrated athletic achievement on the ice and have given back to the community and/or the campus though service opportunities. To be eligible, a student-athlete must have completed a full year at their school.
Mattson, a native of Chanhassen, Minn., is a management major with a 3.922 cumulative grade-point average. He is a national finalist for the Senior CLASS Award and was named a CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2013-14. He was also the men's hockey recipient for the 2013-14 NCAA Elite 89 Award, given annually to the player with the best grade-point average at the NCAA Frozen Four.
On the ice, Mattson appeared in 19 conference games this season and tied for fourth among NCHC defensemen with 15 points.
The 2014-15 NCHC Scholar-Athlete of the Year will be chosen from the Scholar-Athlete Team, with the winner being announced at the NCHC Awards Celebration on Thursday, March 19, in Minneapolis on the eve of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff.
Mattson was also one of five UND student-athletes named to the NCHC All-Academic Team this afternoon. He was joined by classmates Connor Gaarder (Edina, Minn.) and Mark MacMillan (Penticton, British Columbia), junior Zane McIntyre (Thief River Falls, Minn.) and sophomore Matt Hrynkiw (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan).
To be eligible for the NCHC All-Academic Team, student-athletes must have a GPA above 3.0 and have completed a full year at their current institution. Freshmen are not included, but those first-year student-athletes that finish with a 3.0 GPA or better at the end of the 2014-15 school year will be recognized this summer and added to the NCHC Academic All-Conference Team.
