BURNSVILLE, MINN. -- Seniors Krista Goerger and JJ Cooney of the University of Sioux Falls are among the 32 student-athletes named Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Male and Female Honor Student-Athletes of the Year, according to an announcement Friday (April 30) by the league office.

The NSIC member institutions, including USF, nominated one male and one female student-athlete for the prestigious Britton and Kelly Awards, which is considered the top student-athlete honor by the league. All 32 student-athletes nominated become NSIC Honor Student-Athletes of the Year with two being selected as Britton and Kelly award recipients. Those honorees, as announced by the NSIC office, included Jordan Will of Minot State, who received the 2021 Dr. William Britton Scholar-Athlete; and Kendall Cornick of Augustana, who earned the 2021 Willis R. Kelly Scholar-Athlete Award.  
 

The Britton Scholar-Athlete Award for Academic Excellence recognizes the NSIC's top male student-athlete while the Kelly Scholar-Athlete Award is presented to the NSIC's top female student-athlete. The Britton Award was created in 1985 in honor of Dr. William Britton, a longtime faculty representative at Bemidji State University. The Kelly Award is named in honor of Willis R. Kelly, an associate professor of physical education at the University of Minnesota-Morris. Honor student-athlete nominees must maintain a grade point average of 3.5 or better (on a 4.0 scale); exhibit evidence of academic excellence beyond the minimum grade point average (scholarship prizes and other academic recognition), participate in the life of the institution, and participate in at least two-thirds of the varsity events of the individual's primary sport. The award is voted on by NSIC Faculty Athletic Representatives.

Both Goerger and Cooney have excelled at USF, both in competition and in the classroom.
 
A native of Pickstown, S.D., Cooney, who earned the Scholar Athlete honor award for the second straight year, helped lead the USF Men's Golf Program to the program's first-ever NCAA DII Central Region appearance. The Cougars, led by Cooney, were ranked seventh in the region as the team competes at Shoal Creek GC in Kansas City, Mo., on May 5-8. In 2021, Cooney competed in seven events and totaled 19 rounds of golf for a team-best 75.37 scoring average for ninth in the NSIC. Cooney and his teammates ranked second in the NSIC in team scoring average at 299.8. He had a season-best finish of third at the Hillcat Classic in Owasso, Okla., which included a season-best round of two-under par 70 as he shot a  218 (76-72-70).

Cooney earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Administration and Entrepreneurial Studies in May and is be enrolled in the Master of Business Administration program. He was selected to the CoSIDA All-District Team in 2020. The standout golfer, who was named USF's Male Student-Athlete of the Year on April 27, 2020, had four top-20 finishes in 2021 and now has 17 top-10 finished, six top-five and an individual title. He helped lead USF to a program best third place finish at the NSIC Championships

A three-time All-NSIC selection, Cooney finished with four rounds at or under par which was the best on the squad. Cooney is also a three-time Academic All-NSIC selection who received the NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award for a GPA of 3.75 or higher. The son of Tom and Deb Cooney, JJ was also named the Vucurevich School of Business Outstanding Entrepreneurial Studies Senior during the Spirit of Excellence presentation in 2020. 
 

Krista Goerger, one of the best volleyball players in school history, was recently recognized for earning the NSIC Elite 18 Award for volleyball by maintaining the highest grade point average and most completed credits among the 16 teams in the league.
 
A tough-minded and focused competitor, Goerger, who has led USF to a combined 52-31 record (33-27 in league play) in three seasons, has evolved into one of the leaders on USF's Volleyball Team. 

A three-time Academic All-NSIC performer, she ranks among the best to play volleyball at USF.
 Goerger established a USF school record career mark of 2,397 set assists over her first 78 matches.  Goerger has the program's two-top season marks for set assists average with 10.37 (94 sets) in 2019 and 10.36 (102 sets), in 2018.
 
All-time at USF, she ranks second in assists per set at 9.0, third in career service aces with 90, eighth in digs and seventh all-time in digs per set at 1.72. She played a key role in USF's first 20-win campaign in 2018 at the DII level as the Cougars earned regional consideration and advanced to the NSIC Tournament semifinals for the first time in 2018. Additionally, she helped USF earn AVCA top-20 rankings for the first time a year ago (2019) during a 17-11 season.
 
After she concludes volleyball, Goerger plans to attend graduate school and then pursue a career in science with the hope of uncovering discoveries that will benefit mankind.