Christopher Judd, News Correspondent

Swimming named Scholar All-America team

The swimming and diving squad was named a Scholar All-America team for the second consecutive semester earlier this month.

The recognition, awarded by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America, is given to teams that have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher. The Huskies earned a collective 3.53 GPA for the spring semester, which was the 11th-highest in the nation and first in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA).

The Huskies were also awarded the Scholar All-America recognition for the fall 2011 semester, during which they had a 3.37 team GPA.

The swimming and diving team opens its 2012-13 schedule Oct. 6 with the Red vs. Black Intrasquad Meet at Barletta Natatorium.

Volleyball picked to win CAA title

The Northeastern volleyball team was voted the preseason favorite to win the 2012 CAA title by the league’s head coaches Tuesday.

After finishing the 2011 season with a 21-6 record, including 11-3 in the CAA, the Huskies have five All-CAA players returning for 2012, including sophomores Jillian Briner (CAA Rookie of the Year) and Natalia Skiba (CAA Defensive Specialist of the Year), and juniors Janelle Tucker (All-CAA First Team), Kelly Bacon (All-CAA Third Team) and Nichole Kurz (All-CAA Third Team). The Huskies have no freshmen on their 2012 roster.

The Huskies lost to Virginia Commonwealth University 3-2 in the CAA semifinals Nov. 19, 2011.

Northeastern opens its season on Aug. 24 against the University of Alabama in Worcester. The Huskies’ will play their first CAA match of 2012 against Hofstra University on Sept. 22.

Sophomore forward Kendall Coyne and incoming freshman forward Paige Savage were named to the USA Hockey Women’s Under-22 Select Team, which will play Team Canada three times this week in Calgary, Alberta. The first game will be played Thursday at 9 p.m.

Coyne scored 26 goals and had 19 assists in 31 games for the Huskies in 2011-12, which ranked second overall in Hockey East and third among all rookies in the nation. She was named the unanimous 2012 Hockey East Rookie of the Year in addition to United States College Hockey Online (USCHO) Rookie of the Year.

Savage, a native of Johns Creek, Ga., served as captain of the North American Hockey Academy Under-19 Team last year, leading the team in goals scored, and was a member of the Under-18 World Championship Team that won the gold medal in 2011.

Men’s basketball adds four recruits to 2012-13 roster

The men’s basketball team will welcome four incoming freshmen this season – forward Kwesi Abakah and guards Derrico Peck, Zach Stahl and David Walker.

Abakah, a native of Suwanee, Ga., is a 6-foot-8-inch forward who shot 64 percent from the floor and averaged six rebounds and two blocks per game for North Winnett (Ga.) High School. Across the state, Peck (Acworth, Ga.) averaged 15.1 points per game, 7.1 rebounds per game, 3.6 assists per game, 2.5 blocks per game, and two steals per game – all team bests – as a captain at Etowah (Ga.) High School.

Stahl was named first team all-state and won three Minneosta state titles for Hopkins High School en route to a top-20 national ranking during his senior season. The Chanhassen, Minn., native posted a team-best 19.1 points per game and eight rebounds per game during his final season.

Walker (Stow, Ohio) averaged 15 points, six assists and four rebounds per game as a senior at Stow-Munroe Falls High School, earning him first team All-Ohio honors. He was awarded Northeast Ohio Conference Player of the Year as a junior in 2011.

In June, St. Francis University (Pa.) head coach Rob Krimmel also announced that junior Scott Eatherton will transfer to Northeastern and join the team in 2013. The 6-foot-8-inch forward averaged a team-best 14 points and 7 rebounds in 29 games for Saint Francis last season.

The men’s basketball team has not yet released its 2012-13 regular season schedule.