Dec. 17, 2004
EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - Lafayette senior guard Stephen Bono (Upper Saddle River, N.J./Northern Highlands Regional) has been named to the Division I-AA Athletics Directors Association Academic All-Star Team for the third season.
Bono, a Civil Engineering major with a 3.80 GPA, is also one of six finalists, chosen from the 36 honorees, for the Division I-AA Athletics Directors Association's $5,000 Postgraduate Scholarship. Two student-athletes will receive postgraduate scholarships during the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Convention (NACDA) in June 2005.
A four-year starter at right guard and co-captain of the 2004 Patriot League champions, Bono was an All-Patriot League First-Team selection this season. He was part of an offensive front that paved the way for Lafayette to rank second in the Patriot League, and in the top 20 nationally, in rushing offense at 212.8 yards per game.
Off the field, Bono is a three-time selection to the Academic All-District II squad and was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America First Team this season. He is the only two-time recipient of the Lafayette Maroon Club Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award and has made the Dean's List every semester at Lafayette. Bono is a recipient of the Marquis Scholarship, Lafayette's most prestigious academic scholarship, and has been a member of the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll each season.
To be eligible for Academic All-Star honors, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key player with legitimate athletics credentials, maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.20 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at the nominated institution and have completed one full academic year at the institution. Now in its 12th year, the Division I-AA Athletics Directors Association has selected Academic All-Stars in each of the last seven seasons. The Association is administered by the NACDA.
Lafayette (8-4 overall, 5-1 Patriot League) won its first Patriot League championship since 1994 this season and made the school's first appearance in the NCAA Division I-AA Playoffs.
