BURNSVILLE, Minn. - University of Minnesota Crookston tennis student-athlete Madeleine Schneider (Gartringen, Germany) is the second Golden Eagle in the program's history to be bestowed with the prestigious Willis R. Kelly Scholar-Athlete Award. The Kelly Scholar-Athlete Award, in its 39th year, is presented to the NSIC's top female student-athlete.
The Kelly Award is named in honor of Willis R. Kelly, an associate professor of physical education at the University of Minnesota-Morris. A member of the NSIC Hall of Fame, Kelly also coordinated the Minnesota-Morris Physical Education Department from 1970-87. She became the first director of women's intercollegiate athletics at Minnesota-Morris in 1976 and was later promoted to athletics director for the whole department. Kelly passed away in 1988. The member institutions of the NSIC nominate one male and one female student-athlete for the Britton and Kelly Awards. The nominees must meet the following criteria: a grade point average of 3.5 or better (on a 4.0 scale); evidence of academic excellence beyond the minimum grade point average (scholarship prizes and other academic recognition), evidence of participation in the life of the institution, and evidence of participation in at least two-thirds of the varsity events of the individual's primary sport. The award is voted on by the NSIC Faculty Athletic Representatives.
Arik Johnson of the University of Minnesota Duluth was awarded the Dr. William Britton Scholar-Athlete Award presented to the top male scholar-athlete in the NSIC.
The 30 student-athletes nominated for the NSIC's two most prestigious awards will also be recognized as NSIC Male and Female Honor Student-Athletes of the Year at their respective institutions. Schneider and Johnson will be recognized Tuesday, July 9 at the NSIC Hall of Fame Banquet in Bloomington, Minn. and will each receive a $3,000 post-graduate scholarship.
Madeleine Schneider, a native of Gärtringen, Germany, is a senior majoring in software engineering, information technology management at the University of Minnesota Crookston. The Andreae-Gymnasium Herrenberg High School graduate holds a 4.00 grade point average while excelling in women's tennis for the Golden Eagles. Schneider is the second student-athlete from UMC to earn the NSIC Kelly Award as she joins Angela Swanson (2001).
Schneider has been named to the Chancellor's List multiple times during her undergraduate education, is a NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic Award recipient and a multiple time member of the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence. She has been an Alpha Lambda Delta National Honor Society member the last two years and a Mestenhauser Student Award for Excellence in Campus Internationalization honoree in 2023: a system-wide University of Minnesota award that is given to recognizes outstanding student contributions to international education.
Schneider earned All-NSIC First Team honors for the second-consecutive season in 2024. She went 12-3 at No. 1 singles, which was the third-best winning percentage in the conference and the best among No. 1 single players. Schneider went 9-5 at No. 2 doubles with Blaike Zander this past season. Schneider is the all-time leading singles player in UMC program history and was the first UMC tennis student-athlete to earn NSIC Player of the Week honors, a feat she accomplished four times in her career. In the community, Schneider has volunteered at the annual Santa Land which is an event dedicated towards children to have a fun day during
the winter holiday. She has also given her time serving meals at Harvest & Cathedral Church with the Multicultural International Club.
"Madeleine excels in all aspects of being a student-athlete. As a student, she has performed at a high level both in and out of the classroom. She has used her academic talent and competitive spirit to help our campus compete at academic contests like the Harvard Global Case Competition. Our tennis program has dramatically increased its profile in no small part due to Madi's excellence on the court and her mentorship to her teammates. While her academic and athletic performance has been outstanding, her contributions to the University and broader community have been just as impressive. She has mentored new students in our freshman seminar courses, been actively involved in campus student governance, and has been recognized by the University of Minnesota System for her efforts to increase multicultural awareness. I can think of no one more deserving of this honor on our campus and
thank the NSIC for recognizing her achievements with this award," said UMN Crookston Faculty Athletic Representative Dr. Tim Dudley.
Schneider is only the third Minnesota Crookston student-athlete to garner the coveted Britton and Kelly Awards. Swanson received Kelly Award in 2001, while Steven Brandt was bestowed the Britton Award in 2002.
