ST. PAUL, Minn. – UW-Superior seniors
Eric Watson (Thunder Bay, Ontario/Hammarskjold) and
Eva Reinertsen (Duluth, Minn./Homeschooled) have been nominated for the 2020 UMAC Scholar-Athlete Leadership Award, the league announced Wednesday.
The award is presented to student-athletes who embody what it means to be an NCAA Division III student-athlete. Through the honor, the UMAC recognizes the role athletics plays in developing leaders by rewarding athletes' excellence in the classroom as well as their service to the community.
Both Watson of the men's soccer team and Reinertsen of the women's basketball team compiled exemplary seasons in and out of competition. They were both named Academic All-America® as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, with Watson being a third-team selection and Reinertsen garnering the Yellowjackets' first-ever first-team honor.
On the field, Watson scored 15 goals and three assists. He became the UWS all-time leader in goals scored on Oct. 12 at Bethany Lutheran.
Watson was named UMAC Offensive Player of the Year and to the UMAC first team and United Soccer Coaches third team all-region in 2019.
In 90 career matches, he scored 43 goals and added 17 assists for 103 points.
In addition to earning Academic All-America® honors for a second consecutive season (she was a third-team pick last year), Reinertsen led the team with 17.7 points, 8.1 rebounds per game and a 47.7 field-goal percentage, while tying for the UMAC lead in assists (95) and also tying for second in assists per game (3.5).
She also picked up 2020 D3hoops.com All-West Region Third Team accolades. A three-time All-UMAC performer and UMAC Rookie of the Year in 2016-17, she surpassed 1,000 career points on Dec. 14. Reinertsen finished her career with 1,323 points and 570 rebounds.
Finalists are nominated by each institution and the winners are selected by the UMAC Council of Faculty Athletics Representatives. Winners of the Scholar-Athlete Leadership Award – which will be given to one male and one female – will be announced Wednesday, April 15. The two award winners will be honored by their respective institutions and presented with a personalized plaque.
