Hilltoppers’ McDonald Named Academic All-District
WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – West Liberty University senior linebacker Clay McDonald has been honored as a first-team NCAA Division II Academic All-District® selection for the 2021 season.
Selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), the 2021 Academic All-District® Teams recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their impressive accomplishments on the field and in the classroom.
The 6-3, 235-pound standout from Valley Grove, W.Va. closed out his stellar Hilltopper athletic and academic career in impressive fashion during the abbreviated spring season.
McDonald was the College of Business banner carrier at commencement after graduating with the highest GPA in the College. Voted the 2019 and 2020 Outstanding Management Student at West Liberty, he is currently maintaining a perfect 4.00 grade-point average in his graduate studies while working toward his Master’s in Business Administration at West Liberty.
A team captain with the WLU football squad, McDonald earned All-Mountain East Conference honors for the second straight season. He started all four games and ranked second on the team with 25 tackles, highlighted by a program-high 11 stops against Wheeling.
The 2021 Academic All-District® squad includes student-athletes from all four Super Region One conferences – the Mountain East Conference (MEC), Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), Northeast-10 (NE-10) and Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC).
As a first-team Academic All-District® selection, McDonald is now a candidate for the 2021 NCAA Division II Academic All-America® Football Team. Academic All-America® balloting gets under way later this month.
FOOTBALL
CoSIDA 2021 ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT TEAM
NCAA Division II
Super Region One
OFFENSE
Pos Player School Yr GPA Academic Major
QB Evan Ernst Ohio Dominican Sr. 4.00 Finance
RB Andrew Brazicki Bentley Sr. 3.70 Corporate Finance/Accounting
WR Henry Litwin Slippery Rock Gr. 3.66/4.00 Safety Management (UG)/MBA (G)
WR Konnor Maloney Hillsdale Sr. 3.68 Exercise Science
TE Jordan Smith Gannon Sr. 4.00 Biomedical Engineering
OL Eric Hudanick California (Pa.) Gr. 3.51/3.77 Business Administration
OL Derek Ivey Stonehill Sr. 3.94 Economics
OL Cole Johnson Hillsdale Sr. 3.81 Financial Management
OL Jack Kennedy Bentley Sr. 3.36 Management
OL Austin Wayt Slippery Rock Gr. 3.50/4.00 Safety Management (UG)/MBA (G)
K Tanner Harding Notre Dame (Ohio) Sr. 3.91 Psychology
DEFENSE
Pos Player School Yr GPA Academic Major
DL Alexander Findura Bloomsburg Sr. 3.59 Business Management
DL Adam Popielarcheck Stonehill Sr. 3.44 Criminology
DL Ricky Robinson Shepherd Gr. 3.88/4.00 Business Administration (UG)/MBA (G)
DL JT Turner Concord Sr. 3.94 Business Administration
LB CLAY McDONALD WEST LIBERTY GR. 3.84/4.00 BUSINESS MANAGEMENT (UG)/MBA (G)
LB Trysten McDonald Slippery Rock Gr. 3.56 Mathematics
LB Nathan Moore Notre Dame (Ohio) Jr. 3.96 Management
DB Alexander Anschutz Hillsdale Sr. 3.84 Biochemistry
DB John Merica W.Va. Wesleyan Jr. 3.76 Accounting
DB Trey Paul Shippensburg Sr. 3.75 Finance
DB Rich White III Wheeling Jr. 3.62 Business Management
P Jed Quackenbush Ohio Dominican Sr. 3.44 Exercise Science
ST Max Drinon Bentley Sr. 3.56 Supply Chain Management