DEKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University wrestling program placed a school-record nine Huskies on the 2021 Academic All Mid-American Conference Team the league announced on Friday.
 
"People talk about the student-athlete, but to see these guys embody the spirit of that term, really makes us proud as a staff," NIU head coach Ryan Ludwig said. "It shows the commitment to the program in terms of living the right way to ultimately have success on and off the mat."
 
National qualifier and NIU's first-ever recipient of the NCAA's Elite 90 Award Mason Kauffman leads the group. The Stratford, Wis. native boasts a 4.0 grade point average and is pursuing his degree in kinesiology and is one of four Huskies studying that discipline.
 
"Through all the time and hours you put in to improve yourself in the athletic arena, nothing details who you are more than showing that class work and having that well-roundedness in terms of being a great student, a great competitor and someone who gives back to the community," Ludwig said. "Mason represents all of that very well."
 
Of the nine Huskies selections, two – Bryce West and Will Feldkamp – are earning their second Academic All-MAC accolades of their careers.
 
NIU's previous best for Academic All-MAC selections was four which was achieved in 2018 and 2019.
 
The Academic All-MAC honor is for a student-athlete who has excelled in athletics and academics. To qualify, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA and have participated in at least 50 percent of the contests for that particular sport.
 
Mason Kauffman, 174, Jr., Kinesiology, 4.0 (Stratford, Wis.)
*Will Feldkamp, 197, Jr.-R, Sociology, 3.6 (Dexter, Mich.)
Dillon Nichols, 141, So., Pre-Physical Therapy, 3.6 (Mexico, Mo.)
Tristin Guaman, 157, Sr., Finance, 3.5 (Wheeling, Ill.)
Caleb Brooks, 141, So., Pre-Physical Therapy, 3.4 (Canal Winchester, Ohio)
*Bryce West, 133, Jr., Kinesiology, 3.4 (Solon, Iowa)
Jaivon Jones, 149, Fr-R, Kinesiology, 3.3 (Shaker Heights, Ohio)
Max Ihry, 285, Sr., Communications-Media Studies, 3.3 (Naperville, Ill.)
Izaak Olejnik, 165, So., Kinesiology, 3.2 (Bakersfield, Calif.)
 
*-2019 Academic All-MAC
 
-NIU-