2010-11 USHL Scholar-Athlete Award

Press Release

The United States Hockey League today announced that Kevin Liss of the Youngstown Phantoms and Jaycob Megna of the Muskegon Lumberjacks have both earned the 2010-11 USHL Scholar-Athlete Award.

Established in 2007, the USHL Scholar-Athlete Award recognizes players for both their success in the classroom and on the ice. Candidates are nominated by their coaches, teachers, and academic counselors based on their grade-point-average, coursework, and overall school participation.

"Kevin and Jacob represent everything we like to say the USHL is about," said USHL Commissioner Skip Prince. "It takes an extraordinary commitment for a young man to play in this league – but there is just as strong a requirement to commit to the classroom and the community. Now that's two-way play, USHL style. Congratulations to two of our best."

Kevin Liss played 42 games as a defenseman for the Phantoms during his first USHL season. The 18-year-old collected three points (3a) and posted a plus-five rating as he emerged as one of the key contributors to the Phantoms defensive unit.

The 6-0, 200-pound defenseman also excelled at a high level in the classroom as he balanced both hockey and academics through a demanding USHL season. Liss has maintained a 4.0 grade-point-average while attending Ursuline High School in Youngstown, coursework that included Advanced Placement calculus. Following the hockey season, he transferred back to Upper St. Clair High School in his native Pittsburgh where he will complete his senior year. He completed 10 honors level courses through his first three years of high school. Factoring in those Advanced Placement courses, his weighted GPA is well above the 4.0 mark. Liss is a member of the National Honor Society and was awarded the Certificate of Merit by the state of Pennsylvania for his outstanding performance on both the College Board SAT (2120) and ACT (31) tests.

Jaycob Megna played 55 games for the expansion Lumberjacks and was second among the team's defensemen in scoring with 18 points (1g, 17a). He helped the Lumberjacks qualify for the Clark Cup Playoffs and chipped in three assists over six postseason games.

The first-year USHL player attended Mona Shores High School in Muskegon during the hockey season. He maintained a 4.0 GPA in coursework that included college preparatory classes and two Advanced Placement classes in statistics and psychology. While the USHL plays 90% of it game schedule on weekends and holidays, Megna was diligent in making up school assignments from classroom time that he did miss for travel. The 6-4, 202-pound defenseman also volunteered to be a peer tutor at Mona Shores, helping at-risk students improve mathematical skills. He will graduate from Glenbrook North High School in his hometown of Northbrook, Illinois this spring. Through his honors track of academics, the 18-year-old has accumulated a GPA of 4.5 during his high school career. He is committed to play collegiate hockey at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Other players nominated for the 2010-11 USHL Scholar Athlete Award were Cedar Rapids RoughRiders defenseman Josiah Didier, who maintained a 3.81 GPA while attending Washington High School in Cedar Rapids; Omaha Lancers forward Jonathan Liau, a Princeton University commit, who enrolled in Advanced Placement courses in both English and biology and maintained a cumulative 3.97 GPA at Millard North High School; Lincoln Stars forward Jared Hanson, who has cumulative GPA over 3.7 and took AP courses in psychology, calculus, and literature/composition at Lincoln Southeast High School this year; and Green Bay Gamblers goaltender Adam Wilcox, who maintained a 3.6 GPA at Ashwaubenon High School in Green Bay and ranked 37 out of 272 students.

Previous recipients of the USHL Scholar-Athlete Award include Omaha Lancers forward Anthony Hamburg (2009-10), Youngstown Phantoms goaltender Matthew Mahalak (2009-10), Omaha Lancers goaltender Jeff Teglia (2008-09), and Sioux Falls Stampede forward Matt Farris (2007-08).

(Nathan can be reached at fourniern@students.nescom.edu)