Clayton State University Athletics

Clayton State's Marti Bartis Becomes First CoSIDA Academic All-America First-Team Selection in Program History; Second Ever
November 23, 2015

CoSIDA Academic All-America Release

YOUNG HARRIS, Ga. – Senior midfielder Maria Marti Bartis (Girona, Spain) has accomplished something no other individual in program history has as she has been named a CoSIDA Academic All-America First-Team selection following an incredible season on the field and in the classroom.
 
She is one of just 11 Division II women's soccer student-athletes across the country to earn First-Team honors and just the second individual in the illustrious 26-year history of Clayton State Athletics to earn Academic All-America honors. She joins cross country and track and field student-athlete Robert Spezzacatena, who was a Third-Team choice in 2012.

"What a tremendous honor," said Tim Duncan, Director of Athletics. "Maria epitomizes what it means to be a scholar-athlete, having achieved success as an All-American on the field last year, and now this recognition for her work in the classroom. This is one of the most important and impressive honors one of our student-athletes could receive. Kudos to Coach O'Sullivan and his staff for recruiting the ideal student-athlete!"
 
Marti Bartis has excelled both academically and athletically in 2015, posting a perfect 4.0 GPA while pursuing a Masters in Health Administration and being one of the top goal scoring threats in the Southeast Region.
 
This season she was named to the All-Peach Belt Conference First-Team and was twice the league's Player of the Week (Sept. 21, Oct. 19) after driving home 11 goals and finishing with 25 points. Four of those goals were also game-winners, which ranks 50^th in the country.
 
On the year, Marti Bartis scored in 10-of-18 games, including six straight from September 11-30. Highlighting that run was a goal and an assist on the game-winner in a 2-1 overtime victory over No. 3 North Georgia on October 14. She was also named to the PBC All-Academic Team for a second consecutive year.
 
This follows a host of honors a year ago, including Daktronics Second-Team All-American and All-Southeast Region First-Team honors. She was also named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-Region Third Team and All-PBC Second-Team.
 
"We are thrilled for Maria to receive this recognition," said head coach Gareth O'Sullivan. "She works extremely hard both on and off the field, and as a program, we are very proud of this accolade."
 
Student-athletes are nominated and selected to the Academic All-District Team by Sports Information Directors who are members of CoSIDA prior to consideration for Academic All-America recognition. Student-athletes selected as Academic All-District then move on to the All-America ballot.
 
ABOUT THE COSIDA ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA PROGRAM
The 2015 CoSIDA Division II Academic All-America Women's Soccer Teams, selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, have been released to recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom.
 
To be eligible for Academic All-America consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by their sports information director. Since the program's inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 20,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.