Bradley Basketball Programs Land Three I-AAA ADA Scholar-Athletes

Nate Kennell, Chelsea Brackmann and Gabi Haack all earned national recognition as Bradley shares top honors with three award winners

2020 I-AAA ADA Scholar-Athletes

Bobby Parker, Associate AD for Communications General 4/13/2020 5:11:00 PM

CLEVELAND – Bradley University is in elite company for its performance on the court and in the classroom as a Bradley record three men's and women's basketball student-athletes earned recognition on the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association (DI-AAA ADA) 18th Annual Scholar-Athlete Team, presented by ARMS Software, according to an announcement by the national association Monday.

Bradley's three honorees equal Gonzaga for the most in the nation and the Braves join the Zags and Belmont as the only schools with student-athletes recognized from both genders.

Bradley Men's Basketball senior guard Nate Kennell (Metamora, Ill./Metamora H.S.) was one of 11 men's basketball student-athletes to earn recognition, while the Bradley Women's Basketball team placed two of the 10 female honorees – senior center Chelsea Brackmann (New Berlin, Wis./Eisenhowern H.S.) and junior guard Gabi Haack (Elk River, Minn./Elk River HS).

"A primary tenant of the Bradley Athletics Mission is to lead and support our student-athletes in the pursuit of excellence in the classroom and in competition," said Dr. Chris Reynolds, Bradley University Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics and chair of the Division I-AAA ADA Scholar-Athlete Teams Selection Committee. "Representative of the efforts made by all of our student-athletes, I am truly proud of the leadership displayed by Nate, Chelsea and Gabi in the pursuit of academic and competitive excellence. This recognition is reflective of the culture established within our Athletics Department in general, and both of the Bradley Basketball programs in particular."

The two Bradley Basketball programs had combined for eight I-AAA ADA Scholar-Athlete awards since the program's inception in 2002, most-recently by men's basketball student-athlete Walt Lemon, Jr. in 2014. The 2010 season is the only other year in which both programs had student-athletes recognized – Sam Maniscalco for the men and repeat honoree Jenny Van Kirk for the women.

The combined academic recognition for both Bradley Basketball programs comes on the heels of the best combined season on the court in Braves history. The men's basketball program became the ninth in Missouri Valley Conference history to repeat as MVC Tournament champions, capping a 23-11 campaign with its second consecutive Arch Madness title. Meanwhile, at 22-7 overall and 13-5 in The Valley, the Bradley women's basketball team set program records for overall and conference wins in a season. The 45 combined wins by the two programs were the most in The Valley in 2019-20.

A Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete First-Team selection this year, Kennell is majoring in management information systems and boasts a 3.52 cumulative grade point average. He became the 49th student-athlete in Bradley Men's Basketball history to score at least 1000 points, pushing his total to 1236. A 2020 All-MVC Third Team selection, Kennell ranked among the nation's top 3-point shooters during the 2019-20 season and finished his career second in Bradley history with 253 career 3-point field goals.

Recognized as a Senior CLASS Award Second-Team All-American and a MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team selection, Brackmann sports a 3.57 cumulative GPA as a health science major. Just the sixth student-athlete in Bradley Women's Basketball history to twice land on the All-MVC First Team, Brackmann owns the program's career rebounding record with 953 boards and she finished her career 14th in program history with 1108 career points.

Boasting a 3.76 cumulative GPA as an elementary education major, Haack joined Brackmann on both the All-MVC First Team and the MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team this season. Her 2020 honors also include the MVC State Farm Good Neighbor Award and National Strength and Conditioning All-America recognition. One of the top shooters in Bradley Women's Basketball history, Haack displayed a solid all-around game in 2019-20 as one of eight student-athletes in the nation to total at least 65 3-pointers, 175 rebounds and 65 assists. She will start her senior year 11th in program history with 1161 career points and second with 206 career 3-point field goals, just four shy of the record 210 triples made by Katie Yohn from 2009-13.

Basketball student-athletes from all Division I-AAA ADA member institutions are eligible for these prestigious awards. Each of the nominees is required to maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.20 (4.00 scale) in undergraduate study and have been a starter or important reserve with legitimate athletics credentials. Nominees must have participated in at least 50 percent (50%) of the team's games listed on the nomination form. To be eligible for nomination to the Scholar-Athlete Team, he/she must have reached junior academic standing at their institution (ineligible athletics transfers are NOT eligible).

A special Review Committee of Division I-AAA Athletics Directors were responsible for selecting the winners. The 2020 Review Committee consisted of: Chris Reynolds (Committee Chair), Bradley University; Chasse Conque, UTRGV; Irma Garcia, St. Francis College Brooklyn; Phil Hutcheson, Lipscomb University; Robert Lineburg, Radford University; Joan McDermott, University of San Francisco; Jean Lenti Ponsetto, DePaul University; Marianne Reilly, Manhattan College; and Kenneth Siegfried, Cal State Bakersfield.

About the Division I-AAA ADA
Now in its 19th year, the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association's mission is to enhance initiatives common to its Division I-AAA membership (the Division I institutions that do not sponsor football), in particular, aspects related to their flagship basketball programs. For more information on the Division I-AAA ADA, please visit www.div1aaa-ada.com. The Division I-AAA ADA is administered by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), which is in its 55th year. For more information on NACDA and the 17 professional associations that fall under its umbrella, please visit www.nacda.com.

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