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Five Pace Athletes Nab Academic All-Conference Recognition

PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. --  Five Pace University student-athletes have been recognized by the Northeast-10 Conference for their success in both the classroom and on the playing field by being named to the Spring 2017 Academic All-Conference Teams.

From left: John Kukura, Joshua Kreitler, Brandon Donnellan, Najmah James and Garrett De Lotto.

From left: John Kukura, Joshua Kreitler, Brandon Donnellan, Najmah James and Garrett De Lotto.

Photo Credit: Pace Athletics

A Chester, N.Y native and senior on the men's lacrosse team, Brandon Donnellan was named to the Men's Lacrosse Academic All-Conference Team and was also recognized with the NE-10 Sport Excellence Award for lacrosse. Additionally, lacrosse teammate Joshua Kreitler, a junior from Shelton, Conn., Najmah James, a junior women's lacrosse standout from Danbury, Conn. and baseball seniors John Kukura of New City, N.Y. and Garrett De Lotto of Southbury, Conn. were all named to the Academic All-Conference Teams in their respective sports.

To be eligible for selection to the Northeast-10 Academic All-Conference teams, a student-athlete must participate in at least half of the team's competitions, achieve a 3.30 GPA and have completed at least one academic year.

For Donnellan, this is the third time he has been named to the Northeast-10 Academic All-Conference, and he is also a two-time Division II Athletic Directors Association Academic Achievement Award winner. Last season, Donnellan was picked as the Pace Athletics Merit Award Winner for the 2015-16 campaign and earned the prestigious Pace Athletics Darrell Halloran Memorial Award in 2017.

Kreitler made his second appearance on the NE-10 Academic All-Conference Team and has earned a spot on the NE-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll for six straight semesters. The junior attack also played a key role in the men's lacrosse team's historic season, putting together his best offensive numbers to date with 38 goals.

James helped lead the Setters to a program-best 11-6 record in 2017, as they qualified for the NE-10 Conference Championship for the second year in a row. After two seasons as an NE-10 All-Conference Second-Team honoree, she made the jump to the NE-10 All-Conference First Team in 2017. A lock-down defender, James caused 19 turnovers this season and picked up 29 ground balls, both good for second on the team.

On and off the diamond, Kukura enjoyed a highly decorated year. One of the top outfielders in the conference, he was named to the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings Division II East All-Region Second Team for a second straight year. Kukura finished the season with a batting average of .337, tallying 15 doubles, 44 runs scored and posting a .451 on-base percentage.

Since transferring to Pace prior to the Fall 2015 semester, De Lotto has earned a spot on the NE-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll each semester at Pace. This season, the sure-handed infielder earned ECAC Player of the Week recognition and was named to the NE-10 Weekly Honor Roll three times. De Lotto compiled a 15-game hitting streak during the season, and tallied seven doubles, three triples, two home runs while posting a .995 fielding percentage. 

This article is part of a paid Content Partnership with the advertiser, Pace University. Daily Voice has no involvement in the writing of the article and the statements and opinions contained in it are solely those of the advertiser.

To learn more about Content Partnerships, click here.

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