Tide's Joseph Sykora Is Academic All-America
6/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
June 10, 2008
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - For the third consecutive year, University of Alabama golfer Joseph Sykora has been voted ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America from one of the toughest categories, the At-Large division which includes student-athletes from several sports, including fencing, golf, gymnastics, hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, tennis, volleyball, water polo and wrestling. Winners were announced today (Tuesday).
The Daphne native who finished second at the 2008 Southeastern Conference Championships and won two individual collegiate championships during his Alabama career has two degrees from the University of Alabama. A perfect 4.0 student, he has a bachelor's degree and a Master's degree, both in accounting, receiving his first in May 2007 and the second in May 2008. Degree in hand, he is now pursuing a career in professional golf. Sykora had a 73.94 stroke average in 10 tournaments played this past season and had a 74.26 career stroke average in 41 tournament appearances during his Alabama career. He was medalist at the Topy Cup/U.S. vs. Japan Matches in September 2007 with his 14-under par finish and set what was then the University of Alabama scoring record at 199 (-14) to win the fall 2006 Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate with a 54-hole scorecard that read 67-67-65/199.
Joining Sykora on the University Division 2008 Academic All-America first team were golfers Drew Allenspach (Indiana) and Chris Renninger (Navy), gymnasts Dylan Carney (Stanford) and Stephen Tetrault (Nebraska), ice hockey players Jeff Lerg (Michigan State) and Andrew Lord (Rensselaer), wrestlers Tanner Gardner (Stanford), Tyler McCormick (Missouri) and Eric Tannenbaum (Michigan), tennis players Matheiu Dehaine (UCLA), from water polo Eric Gardiner (Navy) and Sandy Hohener (Stanford), swimming's Kevin Nead (Florida), and lacrosse's Mike Leveille (Syracuse).
Sykora, the 2005 and 2007 State of Alabama Match Play Champion, has now been selected an ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America three times, in 2006, 2007 and 2008. He made SEC history in April as a three-time SEC Scholar of the Year in the sport of men's golf and won the H. Boyd McWhorter Award as the top student-athlete in any sport in the SEC in 2008 as well as the University of Alabama's Bryant Award signifying the school's top student-athlete as well. Both of those awards place equal value on athletic accomplishments, academic accomplishments and leadership. His name will be included in a list of winners in ESPN The Magazine later this summer. To be eligible, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director. Since the program's inception in 1952, the College Sports Information Director's Association whose membership nominates and votes on the award, has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 14,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA covering all NCAA championship sports.
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