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Bridgewater, NJ -- NEC student-athletes gave it their all competitively throughout the 2025-26 academic year, but their drive extended far beyond the field of play
Their commitment to success carried into the classroom, where the league’s 5,000-plus student-athletes continued to excel academically.
That success was reflected in the league’s highest institutional academic honor.
Mercyhurst retained the NEC Institutional Academic Award, earning the distinction in each of its first two years as an NEC member. The Lakers posted a conference-best 3.515 GPA across their 22 NEC-sponsored sports, the second-highest departmental GPA in conference history behind their own record-setting 3.536 mark from 2024-25.
Wagner finished second with a 3.429 GPA, while just .004 points separated FDU (3.394), Le Moyne (3.393) and Saint Francis (3.390) in the battle for third. LIU followed at 3.380.
Collectively, NEC student-athletes posted a 3.359 GPA, the conference’s highest mark since 2020-21 and the third-best in league history. The all-time record remains 3.404, set during the 2019-20 academic year.
The conference also achieved a notable academic milestone, with all 110 women’s teams earning a GPA of 3.0 or higher. Overall, 188 of the conference’s 200 teams (94.0 percent) achieved a GPA of at least 3.0, while nearly 40 percent posted a GPA of 3.5 or better.
“The NEC takes great pride in celebrating student-athletes who excel in the classroom while competing at the highest level,” said NEC Commissioner Noreen Morris. “Congratulations to Mercyhurst on posting the conference’s highest departmental GPA for the second consecutive year, as well as to the many programs recognized with Team GPA honors. The tremendous number of NEC Academic and Commissioner’s Honor Roll recipients, combined with the collective success of our teams in the classroom, reflects the hard work and dedication of our student-athletes, coaches and the academic support systems in place at our member institutions.”
Mercyhurst’s commitment to academic excellence was evident across the board, with all 22 NEC-sponsored teams posting GPAs of at least 3.0 and 11 finishing at 3.5 or above.
“Winning the NEC Institutional Academic Award for the second consecutive year is a tremendous source of pride for our entire Mercyhurst community,” said Joe Spano, Mercyhurst Director of Athletics. “As we continue our transition to Division I, this recognition demonstrates that academic excellence remains at the heart of everything we do. Our student-athletes, coaches, academic support staff, and faculty have embraced the challenge of competing at the highest level while maintaining a commitment to success in the classroom. To lead the conference in overall GPA and earn seven team academic awards speaks to the culture of excellence that defines Mercyhurst Athletics.”
Mercyhurst President Dr. Kathleen A. Getz shared a similar sentiment.
“This recognition reflects the very best of Mercyhurst University and the values that guide our mission,” said Getz. “Our student-athletes continue to demonstrate that excellence in competition and excellence in the classroom go hand in hand. Earning the NEC Institutional Academic Award for a second straight year, while setting one of the highest departmental GPAs in conference history, is a remarkable accomplishment. I congratulate our student-athletes, coaches, faculty, and staff for their dedication, discipline, and commitment to achieving success both academically and athletically.”
The Institutional Academic Award is presented annually to the NEC member who attains the highest overall institutional grade-point average amongst student-athletes competing in sports sponsored by the NCAA Division I conference. The NEC currently sponsors 25 sports: baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, women’s bowling, men’s and women’s cross country, field hockey, football, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field, men’s and women’s soccer, softball, men’s and women’s swimming, men’s and women’s tennis, and men’s and women’s volleyball.
2025-26 School-By-School GPAs
School NEC Sports Overall GPA
CCSU 16 3.180
Chicago State 15 3.180
FDU 20 3.394
Le Moyne 21 3.393
LIU 25 3.380
Mercyhurst 22 3.515
New Haven 19 3.320
Saint Francis U 20 3.390
Stonehill 20 3.300
Wagner 22 3.429
The NEC also honored teams that achieved the highest grade point averages in their respective sports. Mercyhurst paced the conference with a league-high seven Team GPA Awards, earning top honors in men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s lacrosse, and men’s indoor and outdoor track and field. Wagner followed with five awards, LIU earned four, FDU collected three, and Le Moyne, New Haven and Saint Francis took home two apiece.
The Wagner women’s tennis team posted the highest GPA of any NEC team in 2025–26 with an impressive 3.891 mark. Other top-performing squads included FDU women’s tennis (3.820), LIU women’s golf (3.800), women’s tennis (3.800) and men’s golf (3.780), and FDU women’s soccer (3.760).
Demonstrating excellence both on the track and in the classroom, Wagner’s softball and men’s tennis captured both the NEC Championship and Team GPA awards.
Eight programs repeated as Team GPA Award recipients: FDU women’s soccer, Le Moyne women’s swimming and diving, LIU men’s golf, Mercyhurst men’s and women’s basketball and women’s cross country, as well as Wagner baseball and men’s tennis.
2025-26 NEC Team GPA Awards
Sport School GPA
Men’s Basketball Mercyhurst 3.507 (2nd straight)
Men’s Cross Country Mercyhurst 3.617
Football New Haven 3.280
Men’s Golf LIU 3.780 (2nd straight)
Men’s Lacrosse Mercyhurst 3.474
Men’s Soccer LIU 3.550
Men’s Swimming & Diving Le Moyne 3.484
Men’s Tennis Wagner* 3.673 (2nd straight)
Men’s Indoor Track & Field Mercyhurst 3.355
Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Mercyhurst 3.355
Men’s Volleyball LIU 3.300
Women’s Basketball Mercyhurst 3.734 (2nd straight)
Women’s Bowling FDU 3.510
Women’s Cross Country Mercyhurst 3.698 (2nd straight)
Field Hockey Wagner 3.698
Women’s Golf LIU 3.800
Women’s Lacrosse New Haven 3.720
Women’s Soccer FDU 3.760 (2nd straight)
Softball Wagner* 3.622
Women’s Swimming & Diving Le Moyne 3.678 (2nd straight)
Women’s Tennis Wagner 3.891
Women’s Indoor Track & Field Saint Francis 3.682
Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Saint Francis 3.682
Women’s Volleyball FDU 3.700
* Won NEC Championship
NEC Institutional Academic Award Winners
Year School GPA
2025-26 Mercyhurst 3.515
2024-25 Mercyhurst 3.536
2023-24 Sacred Heart 3.450
2022-23 Sacred Heart 3.390
2021-22 Saint Francis U 3.479
2020-21 Saint Francis U 3.482
2019-20 LIU 3.489
2018-19 Robert Morris 3.432
2017-18 Saint Francis U 3.423
2016-17 Sacred Heart 3.381
2015-16 Sacred Heart 3.331
2014-15 Sacred Heart/Wagner 3.279
2013-14 Robert Morris 3.295
2012-13 Wagner 3.305
2011-12 Robert Morris 3.279
2010-11 Saint Francis U 3.270
2009-10 Fairleigh Dickinson/Saint Francis U 3.239
2008-09 Saint Francis U 3.234
2007-08 Wagner 3.186
2006-07 Wagner 3.147
Overall NEC GPA by Year
Year GPA
2025-26 3.359
2024-25 3.323
2023-24 3.306
2022-23 3.273
2021-22 3.328
2020-21 3.377
2019-20 3.404
2018-19 3.265
2017-18 3.281
2016-17 3.239
2015-16 3.201
2014-15 3.186
2013-14 3.158
2012-13 3.176
2011-12 3.163
2010-11 3.133
2009-10 3.135
2008-09 3.120
2007-08 3.070
2006-07 3.039
About The NEC
Now in its 45th season, the NEC is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of ten institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States including New York (#1), Chicago (#3), Boston (#9). Hartford/New Haven (#32) and Syracuse (#88). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 25 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 16 different NCAA Championships. NEC full member institutions include Central Connecticut, Chicago State, FDU, Le Moyne, LIU, Mercyhurst, New Haven, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.necsports.com) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, all @NECsports.