AUSTIN, Texas – University of Alaska Anchorage skiers JC Schoonmaker and Espen Persen capped amazing seasons Tuesday with the ultimate honor for an NCAA student-athlete, both being named to the 2022 Academic All-America® Men's Division II At-Large Team, selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

A senior from Tahoe City, Calif., Schoonmaker became just the 13th UAA student-athlete ever to earn First Team Academic All-America honors, while Persen was a Third Team honoree in voting by CoSIDA members.

The 'at-large' award recognizes the nation's top overall athletic and academic achievers, encompassing the sports of beach volleyball, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rowing, swimming & diving, skiing and tennis.

Schoonmaker earned All-America honors in the 20-kilometer freestyle with a third-place finish and placed 11th in the 10-kilometer freestyle at the NCAA Championships, helping UAA to a fifth-place team showing. The All-Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association First Team performer also competed at the Beijing Olympics in February, where he paired with Ben Ogden to finish ninth in the team sprint event. He also finished 13th in the freestyle sprint and 66th in the 15-kilometer classic at the Games.

Among his seven top-10 finishes, Schoonmaker won three medals at the US National Championships in January, racing to gold in the freestyle sprint and bronze in the classic sprint and 15-kilometer classic.

In the classroom, he earned National Collegiate All-Academic Ski Team honors from the U.S. Collegiate Ski Coaches Association and graduated in May with a 3.96 grade-point average in natural sciences.

A junior from Oslo, Norway, Persen raced to a pair of All-America awards on the Nordic trails, finishing ninth in the 10-kilometer classic and eighth in the 20-kilometer freestyle at the NCAA Championships. He earned All-RMISA Honorable Mention honors after posting four top-10 finishes on the season, including runner-up in the classic race at the Utah Invitational and eighth place in the freestyle race at the UAF Invitational. Persen finished 10th in the freestyle and 14th in the classic races at the RMISA/NCAA Regional Championships.

Persen also earned National Collegiate All-Academic Ski Team honors from the USCSCA and graduated in May with a 3.73 GPA in finance.

Schoonmaker and Persen become the 43rd and 44th Academic All-Americans in UAA history, and join fellow 2021-22 honorees Eve Stephens (volleyball) and Tennae Voliva (women's basketball) to tie for the Seawolves' most ever in an academic year (1995-96 and 2001-02).

The Academic All-America teams are nominated and voted upon by members of CoSIDA and recognize student-athletes of sophomore standing or higher who are starters or significant reserves for their teams with a minimum GPA of 3.30 or better.

UAA All-Time CoSIDA Academic All-Americans (44)
Year    Student-Athlete      Sport                  Honor
1988-89 Meganne Hendricks    Volleyball             3^rd Team
1994-95 Elena Tkacheva       Gymnastics             1^st Team
        Allegra Stoetzel     Women's Basketball     3^rd Team
1995-96 Kyle O'Kelly         Men's Skiing           3^rd Team
        Bobby Taylor         Men's Skiing           3^rd Team
        Elena Tkacheva       Gymnastics             2^nd Team
        Allegra Stoetzel     Women's Basketball     1^st Team
1996-97 Rick Stafford        Men's Basketball       2^nd Team
        Doris Hausleitner    Women's Skiing         3^rd Team
        Zuzana Razusova      Women's Skiing         3^rd Team
2001-02 Janelle Veith        Volleyball             3^rd Team
        Tobias Schwoerer     Men's Skiing           1^st Team
        Tobias Schwoerer     Men's Cross Country    2^nd Team
        Aurore deMaulmont    Women's Skiing         2^nd Team
2002-03 Tobias Schwoerer     Men's Skiing           2^nd Team
2004-05 Mandy Kaempf         Women's Skiing         1^st Team
2005-06 Brian Gregg          Men's Skiing           2^nd Team
        Mandy Kaempf         W. Track/Cr. Country   2^nd Team
2007-08 Raphael Wunderle     Men's Skiing           1^st Team
2008-09 Raphael Wunderle     Men's Skiing           1^st Team
2010-11 Jaime Bronga         Women's Skiing         2^nd Team
2011-12 Micah Chelimo        M. Track/Cr. Country   2^nd Team
        Jaime Bronga         Women's Skiing         1^st Team
        Hanna Johansson      Women's Basketball     3^rd Team
2012-13 Liam Gibcus          Men's Basketball       3^rd Team
        Alfred Kangogo       M. Track/Cr. Country   2^nd Team
        Ruth Keino           W. Track/Cr. Country   3^rd Team
2013-14 Teancum Stafford     Men's Basketball       2^nd Team
        Lukas Ebner          Men's Skiing           2^nd Team
2014-15 Travis Thompson      Men's Basketball       3^rd Team
        Karolin Anders       W. Track & Field       3^rd Team
2015-16 Sean Alexander       Men's Skiing           2^nd Team
2016-17 Jamie Ashcroft       W. Track & Field       1^st Team
2017-18 Hailey Swirbul       W. Skiing (At-large)   1^st Team
        Olivier Mantha       Hockey (At-large)      1^st Team
        Caroline Kurgat      W. Track/Cr. Country   1^st Team
2018-19 Casey Wright         W. Skiing (At-large)   1^st Team
2019-20 Ruth Cvancara        W. Track/Cr. Country   3^rd Team
        Felix Kemboi         M. Track/Cr. Country   3^rd Team
        Marie Ries           W. Track & Field       2^nd Team
2021-22 Eve Stephens         Volleyball             3^rd Team
        Tennae Voliva        Women's Basketball     3^rd Team
        JC Schoonmaker       M. Skiing (At-large)   1^st Team
        Espen Persen         M. Skiing (At-large)   3^rd Team