The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) has recognized six student-athletes for their academic and athletic achievements in spring sports.
The MIAC Elite 22 Award honors individuals who have excelled both in their sport and in the classroom. The award is given to the student-athlete with the highest grade-point average in each sport, provided they meet specific athletic and academic requirements.
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Spring 2026 honorees
- Carter Sheard, a junior at Bethel, received the award for men's tennis. Sheard went 15-5 at No. 1 singles and is majoring in computer engineering.
- Allison Szalay, a senior at Gustavus, was honored in women's tennis. Szalay was undefeated at the fourth and sixth singles positions and posted a 14-3 record at No. 3 doubles. She is majoring in chemistry and physics.
- Jade Anstine, a junior at Gustavus, earned the award in men's outdoor track & field. Anstine placed third in the 100-meter dash and helped his team to a third-place finish in the 4x100-meter relay. He is a nursing major.
- Ashlyn Jore, a senior at St. Olaf, was recognized in women's outdoor track & field. Jore was the conference runner-up in the long jump and is majoring in biology and kinesiology.
- Lauren Lambert, a senior at Gustavus, received the award in softball. Lambert started 39 games at second base, batting .383 with 46 hits and 14 RBI. She is a statistics major.
- Collin Kray, a senior at Saint John’s, was honored in baseball. Kray played in 20 games, batting .375 with three RBI and six runs scored. He is a chemistry major.
All six honorees have maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout their college careers, according to the announcement.
Criteria for the Elite 22 Award
The MIAC Elite 22 Award is modeled after the NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete Award. It is presented to the student-athlete with the highest GPA in each sport who meets specific athletic requirements. In team sports, the award goes to the individual with the highest GPA on the active postseason roster of a playoff-qualifying team. In championship meet sports, the winner is the individual with the highest GPA who was named All-Conference. Each winner must be a junior or senior and in at least their second full academic year at their current institution. Ties are broken by the number of credits earned.
Future changes to the award
Starting in the fall of 2026, the MIAC’s top academic honor will be renamed the MIAC Elite Scholar-Athlete Award. This change follows the NCAA’s rebranding of the Elite 90 Award to the Elite Scholar-Athlete Award during the 2025-26 academic year.
Each MIAC Elite 22 Award recipient will receive a plaque to commemorate their achievement. An archive of previous MIAC Elite 22 recipients can be found on the Elite 22 home page.
This story was created by Jared Greenleaf ([email protected]) with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing, and publishing process. Learn more at cm.usatoday.com/ethical conduct.
This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: Six MIAC elite scholar-athletes recognized for 2026 spring sports