Schlingman Second-Team Academic All-American

Matt Schlingman (Ashland, Ohio / Ashland), the starting center for The College of Wooster’s nationally-ranked basketball squad, was named to the 2004 Academic All-America Second Team, announced the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Thursday.

Schlingman, who received honorable mention on the All-North Coast Athletic Conference Team on Wednesday, becomes the third Scot of the 2000s to earn the prestigious Academic All-American honor, joining current standout swimmer Kayla Heising and alum Ryan Hartschuh, who played football (1999-02).

Overall, Wooster has had 16 Academic All-Americans in the history of the award, but never one from the men’s basketball team until now. While former Scot cagers have won NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships and been academic all-district selections, Schlingman is the first to be an Academic All-American.

"We are very pleased for Matt, having received this outstanding honor," remarked Wooster head coach Steve Moore. "He is most certainly deserving, as he has had an outstanding season on the court and has established himself as one of the very top students at The College of Wooster."

Schlingman enters this week’s NCAA Division III Tournament as one of three Scots averaging in double figures (11.0 ppg) and leading the conference in field-goal percentage (.599). He has helped Wooster’s balanced team to a rebounding margin of +14.7 per game — best in NCAA Div. IIII — by grabbing 4.8 boards per outing. Schlingman, who suffered an ankle injury in practice on Feb. 16 and has only seen limited action in two games since, also has totaled 23 assists, 18 blocks, and eight steals in 24 games.

The son of Lee and Selora Schlingman, Matt owns a 3.98 cumulative GPA, while majoring in mathematics. A regular member of the Dean’s List, he also volunteers with "Men Working for Change," a school group trying to help decrease violence towards women.

Schlingman was one of 15 across the country to earn Academic All-American honors within the "College Division" (NCAA Divs. II and III, and NAIA institutions) for men’s basketball.