Four named to 2018-19 Academic All-OAC squad in Women's Golf

May 21, 2019

By Blake Moore

ADA — Four Ohio Northern student-athletes garnered Academic All-Ohio Athletic Conference honors for the 2018-19 season in women's golf, the league office announced Tuesday morning.

Senior golfers Caitlin Silva (Hilliard/Bradley) and Alaina Mikolajewski (Piqua) and juniors Taylor Daniel (Columbia City, Ind.) and Lydia Shealy (Tiro/Buckeye Central) were all honored for their work in the classroom throughout the season.

To receive Academic All-OAC honors, student-athletes must be a sophomore-or-higher in academic standing, maintain varsity-level status during the season, and own a minimum 3.50 cumulative grade-point average.

The OAC office recognized 417 student-athletes from the league's 10 member institutions in 10 sports this spring for their commitment to academic excellence. In all, Ohio Northern had 57 student-athletes honored with the award.

Silva, a senior early childhood education major, was honored for the third consecutive campaign.

This season, the Hilliard native appeared in all 15 rounds for the Polar Bears and posted an 88.2 stroke average to end second on the team. She posted four top-10 finishes this season and fired season-best 18- and 36-hole scores at the Bluffton Fall Classic with an 83-88—171.

She also garnered All-OAC honors with an eighth-place finish at the 2019 OAC Championships, shooting an 85-85-87—257.

Silva has compiled an 89.49 career stroke average in 62.5 career rounds, which ranks eighth-lowest in program history. She has been named a three-time Academic All-OAC honoree, a one-time All-OAC honoree, and a one-time WGCA All-America Scholar.

Mikolajewski is a senior criminal justice major and a two-time Academic All-OAC honoree.

This season, she produced a career-low 98.9 stroke average in 12 rounds to end ninth on the team. She recorded career-low 18- and 36-hole scores at the Polar Bear Fall Classic with an 89-97—186 for a fifth-place finish.

In 33.5 career rounds, Mikolajewski has averaged 108.12 strokes per 18 holes. In addition to her Academic All-OAC kudos, she joined Silva on the 2018 WGCA All-America Scholar listing.

Daniel, a third-year art education major, received her second consecutive honor after being named to the squad last year.

She finished fourth-lowest on the team with a 93.6 stroke average through all 15 rounds this season. Additionally, she compiled three top-15 performances and battled to a 23rd-place finish at the 2019 OAC Championships with a 93-91-88—272.

Daniel has registered a 95.59 career stroke average through 31 rounds in three seasons. She was also named to the WGCA All-America Scholar squad in the 2017-18 campaign.

Shealy made her first appearance on the Academic All-OAC listing this season.

The junior marketing major did not compete in a varsity-level competition during the 2018-19 campaign.

She currently owns a 98.2 career stroke average through five rounds at ONU. Her career-low 18- and 36-hole efforts were established at the 2017 Ohio Wesleyan Invitational with a 98-95—193.

The Polar Bears finished the 2018-19 season with a 28-17 overall record. They concluded the campaign with a fourth-place finish at the 2019 OAC Championships at the River Greens Golf Course in West Lafayette, Ohio.