Cook, Nicolopoulos Earn NEILA Academic All-New England Honors
AMHERST, Mass. – Andrew Cook (Bedford, Mass.) and George Nicolopoulos (Windham, N.H.), recent Regis College graduates and four-year members of the Pride men's lacrosse program, are two of 128 student-athletes to be selected to the 2019 New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (NEILA) Academic All-New England teams, announced recently by the regional organization.
To be eligible, student-athletes must have reached senior standing, maintained a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better, and played a significant role with their lacrosse program. Of the 128 honorees, 90 represent 38 Division III institutions, including a division-high seven from Wesleyan.
Cook, the 2018-19 Regis Male Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year, started all 11 matches as a defender for the Pride, collecting 23 ground balls and causing 13 turnovers during the season. He earned five ground balls at Albertus Magnus March 19 and caused two turnovers on six different occasions. Over the past three seasons, Cook started 39 of the 41 matches he appeared in and picked up an assist in the 2017 season opener against SUNY Poly.
Recovering from an injury that forced him to miss the entire 2018 campaign, Nicolopoulos also started all 11 matches in 2019 for the Pride as a long stick midfielder, leading Regis with 62 ground balls. He collected 11 ground balls in Regis' victories over Mitchell March 13 and Becker March 21, plus he earned 10 ground balls against Thomas April 3. Nicolopoulos completed his collegiate career with 44 appearances, including 41 starts, as he ended up sixth on the school's career ground ball list with 144, plus he scored a goal against Mitchell April 26, 2017.
Cook graduated with a bachelor's degree in humanities and criminal justice, while Nicolopoulos, Regis' representative on the GNAC Men's Lacrosse All-Sportsmanship Team, earned his bachelor's degree in exercise science. They are two of 19 student-athletes from schools within the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) to be recognized by the NEILA.