Yost selected for All-American list

Softball senior Jessica Yost of Bemidji became the first Beaver to make the FPN All-American Second-Team Pitchers list. She also made team history by being named a Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association National Co-Pitcher of the Week for March 30-April 2, which included a perfect game. Overall, Yost posted a 0.29 ERA, allowed one earned run in 24 innings and collected 44 strikeouts with only one walk.

		Golfer Skaar gets NSIC Elite 18 nod Ben Skaar in April became the first Bemidji State student-athlete to receive the NSIC Elite 18 Award in men’s golf, which recognizes competitive and academic success. Skaar, a sophomore from Coleraine majoring in sports management, holds a 4.00 grade point average. He maintained an 81.8 stroke average through 11 rounds this season. Skaar finished 33rd at the NSIC Championship, held April 13-15 in Smithville, Mo., and helped the Beavers place sixth overall.
		17 Beavers carry a perfect 4.0 GPA For the Fall 2016 semester, BSU’s 353 student-athletes in 15 sport programs posted an average GPA of 3.13. The BSU men’s hockey team led with a team GPA of 3.62, and soccer carried a 3.58. Seventeen BSU student-athletes carried a cumulative GPA of 4.0.
		39 Beavers named All-Academic Bemidji State landed 39 student-athletes on the 2016 Fall and 2016-17 Winter Academic All-NSIC Teams, which require a grade point average of at least 3.20. The fall contingent was led by soccer, with 10 student-athletes, followed by football and volleyball, both with six, and cross country with two. For winter, women’s basketball had seven members named, indoor track had six and men’s basketball had two.
		Pelzer achieves first team, 1,000th point Basketball senior Aimee Pelzer of Upsala capped her collegiate career by becoming BSU’s first All-NSIC First Team selection since 2007-08. She averaged 15.0 points, 4.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game and ranked third on the program’s single-season three-point list with 73 as a senior. Pelzer also was one of three Beavers to reach the 1,000-point milestone this past season, joining Tatum Sheley and Sierra Senske
		Tennis sets winning record at 12-5 The tennis team, coached by BSU alumnus Mark Fodness, posted a program-best 12-5 record and gained its second consecutive berth into the NSIC Tournament by going 6-5 in league play. The Beavers ended at 72-30 (.706) in singles play and 73-13 (.740) in doubles. Newcomers Brooke Mimmack (pictured, left) of Brainerd and Ariadna Lopez-Simo (right) of Barcelona, Spain, were ranked among the NSIC’s top five singles players, posting 15-1 and 10-2 records, respectively.
		Nine Beavers earn Myles Brand A school-record nine student-athletes received the NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award this year. They are: Gena Adams and Mitchell Elbe (football), Allison Cordes (women’s basketball), Alayna Krejci (softball), Ryan Rumpca and Jack Stigman (baseball), Sarah Stram and Christine Szurek (soccer) and Shane White (men’s basketball). The award goes to senior NSIC student-athletes who have a cumulative grade point average of 3.75 or higher.
		Three join football’s Hampshire society Three BSU football players were named to the 2017 National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society. Seniors Gena Adams (Phoenix, Ariz.), Mitchell Elbe (Sayner, Wis.) and Jesse Hein (Perham) were among 1,089 players from 297 colleges who maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college careers.
		Yost, Bitzer are Athletes of the Year Senior softball and volleyball standout Jessica Yost of Bemidji and goaltender Michael Bitzer (pictured), a Moorhead junior, were named Female and Male Athletes of the Year for 2016-17. Soccer forward Tia Neuharth, a freshman from Prior Lake, and men’s hockey defenseman Zach Whitecloud, a freshman from Brandon, Man., were selected as the Female and Male Newcomers of the Year. The awards were presented at the Beaver Nation Celebration on April 27.

Mineral Water champs look ahead to Aug. 31

The football team is set for an 11-game 2017 schedule with five home dates, including a Sept. 23 Homecoming matchup versus Southwest Minnesota State. The 2016 Mineral Water Bowl champions open on Aug. 31 at Winona State University, followed by a Sept. 9 home opener versus Concordia University-St. Paul. BSU will host University of Mary on Oct. 7, University of Minnesota Duluth on Oct. 28 and St. Cloud State University on Nov. 4.

Pictured: Wide receiver Christian Lunde after a catch in this year’s Spring Game on April 14.