BURNSVILLE, Minn. – University of Minnesota Crookston student-athletes Ben Thoma (R-Sr., Clearbrook, Minn., Baseball) and Kylie Post (Sr., Corcoran, Minn., Women's Basketball) were named 2021-22 NSIC Honor Student-Athlete Award Winners.


Thoma has been a staple on the baseball diamond and has been a stand-out in the classroom over his career at UMN Crookston. He was the first Golden Eagle student-athlete in any sport to receive the NSIC Elite 18 Award, earning it in 2021. He has a 4.0 GPA with a double major in management and sports and rec management. Thoma has been a captain for the Golden Eagles. He is a four-time NSIC All-Academic recipient. He has done anything and everything asked from his team. He has caught, pitched, played second base, short stop, and third base. Thoma missed the entire regular season in 2021 due to injury and could have hung it up for the year, but he stepped in during the playoffs and helped the Golden Eagles make their deepest run ever in the NSIC Tournament. During the 2022 season, he is batting .246, with a team-leading 37 runs scored, and 12 home runs. He has 34 RBIs on the season.


Post has been a four-year starter for the Golden Eagles. She has a 3.91 GPA in elementary education. She finished her career with 814 career points, 346 rebounds, and 193 assists. Post led the Golden Eagles with 11.6 points per game during her senior season in 2021-22. Post tallied a career-high 27 points against Bemidji State University December 7, 2021. She had 10 games with double-figure scoring during the 2021-22 season.

Augustana University's Tyler Riemersma was named as the 2022 Dr. William Britton Scholar-Athlete Award winner, while Concordia University-St. Paul's Jena Berkland was the 2022 Willis R. Kelly Scholar-Athlete Award recipient.