MIAC Release

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – Nine Saint John's University swimming and diving student-athletes received 2024-25 Winter and Spring Academic All-MIAC honors on Thursday, June 26.

For the fifth-straight academic year, SJU led the MIAC in male honorees with a total of 173 in 2024-25, followed by Gustavus Adolphus (149), Macalester (134), St. Olaf (133) and Carleton (110). The Johnnies had 85 fall honorees in cross country, football and soccer.

Those honored (listed alphabetically) include:

-Sophomore Brennan Close (Princeton, Minn.), a chemistry major with a 3.78 GPA;
-Sophomore Ben Edwards (Burnsville, Minn.), a computer science and physics double-major with a 4.0 GPA;
-Senior Eli Grabinski (Sauk Rapids, Minn./Sauk Rapids-Rice), a physics major (pre-engineering emphasis) with a 3.62 GPA;
-Senior Colby Kern (Delano, Minn.), a mathematics major with a 3.60 GPA;
-Senior Carter Larson (Sartell, Minn./Sartell-St. Stephen), a biochemistry major (pre-dentistry emphasis) with a 3.88 GPA;
-Sophomore Simon Nyangamoi (Harrisburg, S.D.), a psychology major (pre-medicine emphasis) with a 3.62 GPA;
-Senior Langston Philion (Maple Grove, Minn.), an environmental studies major with a 3.57 GPA;
-Senior Jake Tschida (Mendota Heights, Minn./Henry Sibley), a sociology major with a 3.73 GPA;
-Sophomore Cody Watts (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech), an exercise and health science and nutrition double-major with a 3.72 GPA.

Student-athletes must be a sophomore, junior or senior academically with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.50 on a 4.00 scale to qualify for Academic All-MIAC recognition. Transfers, like freshmen, must complete a full academic year to be eligible the following season. 

Athletically, student-athletes must be a member of a MIAC-sponsored, varsity team and be academically and athletically eligible. The student-athlete must have utilized a season of participation (per NCAA and MIAC definitions) and have remained on the sports roster through the conclusion of the sports season.

The Academic All-MIAC honor is the third for Grabinski, Kern, Larson and Tschida, and the second for Philion. Grabinski, Kern, Larson and Watts were named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District swimming and diving team April 1.

The Johnnies finished second out of six teams Feb. 19-22 at the 2025 MIAC Championships and 36th out of 47 teams March 19-22 at the NCAA Division III Championships. In addition to Grabinski, junior Brayden Slavik (Green Isle, Minn./Chaska) earned All-America honorable mention honors with a 15th-place finish in the 1,650-yard freestyle at nationals. He was named the MIAC Men's Swimmer of the Year after he broke three program records, including two of his own, to win the 400-yard individual medley (4:00.12), 500-yard freestyle (4:29.49) and 1,650-yard freestyle (15:32.98) at the conference meet.