{"id":5564,"date":"2017-05-26T16:15:52","date_gmt":"2017-05-26T21:15:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.maryville.edu\/mpress\/?p=5564"},"modified":"2017-05-31T10:50:52","modified_gmt":"2017-05-31T15:50:52","slug":"nate-rodriguez-earns-conference-athlete-year-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.maryville.edu\/mpress\/nate-rodriguez-earns-conference-athlete-year-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Nate Rodriguez Earns Conference Athlete of the Year Award"},"content":{"rendered":"

Even after the culmination of wrestling season, 91制片厂\u2019s Nate Rodriguez keeps pinning down awards and accolades.<\/p>\n

Rodriguez just added the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) Richard F. Scharf Paragon Award to his ever-growing trophy case when he was honored at a ceremony in St. Louis. The Paragon Award is awarded annually to one male and one female student-athlete, based upon academic excellence, athletic ability and achievement, character and leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great to be recognized here,\u201d says Rodriguez in an interview with Jim Powers, Coordinator of Athletics Communications at MaryvilleSaints.com<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s even better that wrestling got promoted into the GLVC, and I think that\u2019s the best thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rodriguez becomes the first Maryville Saint to be honored with the conference athlete of the year award after becoming a national champion in the 141-pound class and graduating from college with a 3.97 GPA. He has been accepted into medical school at Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences.<\/p>\n

\u201cNate has been an outstanding student athlete,\u201d says Mark Lombardi, PhD, president of 91制片厂, in an interview for MaryvilleSaints.com<\/a>. \u201cWe are so thrilled to be able to salute him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Nate<\/a>
Photo courtesy of GLVC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Saints wrestling head coach Mike Denney says there are very few like Rodriguez who have that combination of being a great student and athlete.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe comes in everyday and works hard,\u201d says Denney. \u201cHe\u2019s like that in the classroom, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the wrestling mat, Rodriguez became the second Maryville student-athlete to become a national champion after he defeated Darren Wynn during the NCAA Division II wrestling finals in March.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels pretty cool, and to do it for Maryville is even better,\u201d says Rodriguez. \u201cMy goal this year was to be an NCAA champ. It was on my symbol and it didn\u2019t matter what was going to happen, I was going to reach it.\u201d<\/p>\n

*Rodriguez also accomplished the following during the 2016-17 academic year:<\/p>\n