The University of Maine men’s hockey team’s struggles on the ice haven’t spilled over into the classroom.

The hockey team’s 3.12 grade-point average last semester was the best in the history of the program dating back to the 1977-78 season.

Twenty players had a GPA of 3.0 or better, including six who were 3.5 or better.

They will be honored along with the rest of the school’s top academic student-athletes at the Scholar-Athlete Recognition Awards Ceremony Sunday morning. They will be honored again later that afternoon at halftime of the men’s basketball game between Maine and Binghamton at Alfond Arena in Orono.

Cristina Kerluke, academic counselor for the hockey team, said one of the reasons behind the team’s classroom success has been the 10-member freshman class.

“Eight of the 10 freshmen were above a 3.0 and five were above a 3.5,” pointed out St. Agatha native Kerluke, wife of Maine assistant coach Dan Kerluke. “It’s a real good group of students.”

She added that junior left wing Chris Hahn’s second consecutive 4.0 also helped elevate the team’s GPA.

“We’re very pleased with it,” said Maine coach Tim Whitehead. “To the players’ credit, they have really bought in to the academics-first philosophy, and they keep improving. We’re very proud of them.”

Whitehead praised the effort turned in by Kerluke in advising them and monitoring their progress.

“She’s a wonderful academic counselor. She keeps me on top of their latest academic developments and she keeps our guys focused on academics. We’re really fortunate to have her. She really cares about the student-athletes and that makes a world of difference,” said Whitehead.

Whitehead said even the players who didn’t attain a 3.0 showed commendable improvement, and he said the upperclassmen have set good examples.

Ryan Humanitarian nominee

Maine senior left wing and assistant captain Billy Ryan has been nominated by Whitehead and Maine sports information specialist Laura Reed for the national Hockey Humanitarian Award for his community service as well as his work in the classroom.

The 10 finalists will be announced on Monday.

Maine winger Jim Leger won the award in 2000.

“Billy spends a lot of time visiting patients at [Bangor’s] Eastern Maine Medical Center,” said Whitehead.

The Maine coach added that what makes Ryan’s humanitarian service so special is he does it without any fanfare.

“It’s very important for young people to reach out to people in the community who are going through a tough time and are less fortunate than most of us are, and this certainly shows a strength of character in Bill that most young men don’t have at this age,” said Whitehead.

UMaine track team performs well

The UMaine indoor track and field team had a productive meet, winning several events during Saturday’s Vert et Or Invitational at Sherbrooke, Quebec.

Laura Brustolon was among the top women’s performers, winning the 3000 meters with a time of 10 minutes, 44.09 seconds. Tanya Simard took the triple jump with a leap of 11.14 meters, while the Black Bears’ 4x400m relay team won in 4:10.10.

Simard placed second in the long jump (5.21m), while Allyson Howatt was second in the 60 meters (7.85 seconds) and Vicki Tolton was second in the 300 (41.84 seconds).

In the men’s ranks, Miles Bartlett took top honors in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:01.76. Jeff Ramos claimed the high jump at 2.02 meters.

Carson Hartman and Thomas Williams wound up 1-2 in the triple jump with leaps of 12.72m and 12.32m, respectively. The 4×400 relay squad also crossed the finish line first, in 3:25.56.

Skip Edwards finished second in the 300m in 35.88 seconds.

UM baseball clinic set Feb. 17-21

The UMaine baseball program is gearing up for its preseason baseball clinic, which will be held Feb. 17-21 in the Mahaney Dome and the Memorial Fieldhouse on the Orono campus.

The camp is open to players ages 6-18 and will be divided into age-appropriate groups. Players ages 6-12 will meet 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. daily, while 13-to-18-year-olds gather from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

UMaine also is offering an hourlong hitting clinic for all ages from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. The five-day clinic costs $150, while the hitting clinic is $75 per player.

Registration forms are available on the Web at GoBlackBears.com. Payments should be made to: UMaine Baseball, 5745 Mahaney Clubhouse, Orono, ME 04469.

For more information, contact assistant coach Mark Michaud at 581-1098 or mark.j.michaud@umit.maine.edu.

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