Bardes, Rafter Recognized as NEC Fall Scholar-Athletes of the Year
Central Connecticut seniors Erica Bardes and Angie Rafter were named Northeast Conference Fall Scholar-Athlete award winners it was announced Tuesday by the league office. Bardes, of the women's soccer team, and Rafter, of the women's cross country team, were named the Scholar-Athlete of their respective sports, while the league also named members of the Fall Academic Honor Roll and Commissioner's Honor Roll.
COMPLETE RELEASE
ACADEMIC HONOR ROLL
COMMISSIONER'S HONOR ROLL
Bardes, a history major, has posted a 3.96 GPA and repeated her honor ast Women's Soccer Scholar Athlete from 2019. A United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-America Third Team honoree, she was recently honored as one of six CCSU students to receive the President's Citation Award. The Montvale, NJ, native is a two-time All-NEC First Team selection and two-time United Soccer Coaches All-North Region Second Team pick. Bardes has also been named to the United Soccer Coaches First Team Scholar All-Region Team in 2020-21 after being named to the Second Team in 2019.
Bardes started seven games for CCSU this spring, helping the Blue Devils win their third straight conference title. She tallied one goal and three assists on the campaign. Central allowed just one goal to NEC foes and advanced to its third straight NCAA Tournament. The Blue Devils won their 10th Northeast Conference championship in program history to advance to the NCAA Tournament for the eighth time under head coach Mick D'Arcy.
Rafter graduated this spring with a 3.96 GPA in English. She was recognized as the highest GPA for a graduating female student-athlete at CCSU. The elite runner led the women's cross country team to its third straight Northeast Conference Championship this spring. A two-time NEC Most Outstanding Performer after winning the NEC individual championship in 2018 and 2019, the Danielson, CT native placed second at the 2020-21 NEC Championships in a photo finish. She was also the 2018 and 2019 NEC Women's Cross Country Scholar-Athlete.
All scholar-athlete award winners must have earned a minimum of 60 semester hours at their institution, maintained a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.20 and participated with distinction as a member of a varsity team.
Along with the scholar-athletes, the NEC announced its Fall Academic Honor Roll, consisting of a conference record 1,198 student-athletes with a 3.20 or better grade point average. There were also 382 student-athletes named to the Commissioner's Honor Roll with a 3.75 or better grade point average.