Men's Volleyball Earns Academic Recognition

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – On October 19 at the annual student-athlete mass, which serves as the kick-off for Fall Fest Weekend, Albertus Magnus College Director of Athletic Michael Spinner announced a new aware to be given out on an annual basis. The Sister Charles Marie Brantl, O.P. Award will be presented to the Albertus Magnus varsity team with the highest cumulative Grade Point Average from the previous academic year.

During a career of distinction at Albertus Magnus College that lasted nearly 35 years as a professor, Administrative Council member, and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Sister Charles Marie Brantl, O.P. was a fervent advocate for the cause of the Albertus Magnus athletic program. Aside from being a tremendous supporter of the varsity sports teams at Albertus, Sister Charles was also on the College's Administrative Council when it voted to construct the Cosgrove Marcus Messer Athletic Center in 1989.

From her early days as a professor until her retirement in the spring of 2011, Sister Charles was one of the biggest fans of Albertus Magnus Athletics, making her a natural choice to be honored by the naming of an important academic award.

The first-ever recipient of the Sister Charles Marie Brantl, O.P. Award is the Albertus Magnus Men's Volleyball team, which had a team GPA greater than 3.4 during the 2011-12 academic year. The team was also quite successful in competition, finishing with a record of 19-10, while not only breaking the school record for wins in a season, but the 2012 team had more wins than every other men's volleyball team in Albertus Magnus College history, combined.

Spinner said that the team's commitment to success on the court and in the classroom made the Falcons a tremendous source of pride for the Albertus Magnus community.

"It was a great pleasure to present the first-ever Sister Charles Marie Brantl Award to our men's volleyball team, after a fantastic 2012 season," Spinner said. "During the last two years, we have worked very hard to pursue Sister Charles's vision that we should strive to become champions in the classroom as strongly as we train to be champions in competition. To honor a team that was so incredibly successful in both arenas was something our athletics’ community should be very proud of. This program is a great model for the rest of our athletic department to follow, and I hope our remaining teams compete viciously against one another to receive the Sister Charles Marie Brantl Award every single year."