PEORIA, Ill. -- Senior men's golfer Coby Thompson (East Galesburg, Ill./Knoxville) was named a Capital One Academic All-American according to an announcement by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Tuesday.
A Second Team Academic All-America selection, Thompson is the first Bradley men's golfer to earn Academic All-American honors. Former Bradley men's golfer Dave Lundstrom was a third-team Academic All-American in 1968-69, but earned the honor for basketball after averaging 12.3 points and 4.1 assists per game during his senior season.
Thompson is the second Bradley student-athlete to earn Academic All-America honors this season, joining softball's Brittany Fairbairn, and BU boasts two Capital One Academic All-Americans in the same school year since three individuals (soccer's Todd Reedy, baseball's Eitan Barbalat and men's tennis player Evgeny Samoylov) earned the distinction in 2007-08.
A two-time First-Team Capital One Academic All-District selection, Thompson was one of two unanimous choices for Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete honors and joined former teammate Zach Wanken as the only two-time academic all-district winners in program history. Wanken and Thompson are the only three-time MVC scholar-athlete selections for the Bradley men's golf team.
The recipient of the Valley's inaugural men's golf Elite 18 award, Thompson earned All-Missouri Valley Conference honors after placing sixth at the 2011 State Farm MVC Championship. Bradley's leader in stroke average each of the last two seasons, he was the 2011 Charles Orsborn Award winner; which is presented annually to the senior student-athlete who best combines athletic and academic success with community service.
Thompson posted seven career top-10 finishes and finished out his career as just the fourth player in program history with 80 or more career rounds in the 70's. A chemistry major with a perfect 4.0 cumulative grade point average, he will begin medical school in the fall.
To be eligible for Academic All-America® consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative G.P.A. 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 his/her sports information director.
