Franklin Pierce grad students selected for second-straight year by region's SIDs

RINDGE, N.H. (November 7, 2002) - Franklin Pierce grad students Wolfgang Koschnitzki (Eschborn, Germany) and Chris Schwarz (Babenhausen, Germany) each earned spots on the 2002 Verizon Academic All-District I College Division first team for men's soccer. The teams are selected by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) members throughout the Northeast. With their selection on the first team, Koschnitzki and Schwarz are eligible for Verizon Academic All-America honors to be announced on Monday, November 25.

Koschnitzki and Schwarz were selected from 64 candidates from New England and New York in Divisions II and III and are two of three individuals from the Northeast-10 Conference to make the first team. It marks the second-straight year the duo have earned first team Verizon Academic All-District I honors.

Koschnitzki has started every game in the back for the Ravens over the last three seasons. A three-time All-Northeast-10 Conference and two-time All-New England selection, he is regarded among the top marking backs in all of Division II and this season led a Ravens defensive unit that posted four shutouts and yielded just 1.42 goals per match.

Koschnitzki is an exemplary student-athlete as he graduated Magna Cum Laude (3.79 cumulative grade point average) with a degree in sport and leisure service management in December 2001. He earned the first ever Richard Burns Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year award at Franklin Pierce as well as Verizon District I Academic All-America and NSCAA/adidas Scholar All-America accolades last season and is currently pursuing a Master's Degree in business administration at the school.

Schwarz, a mainstay at midfield for the Ravens the last four years, is a four-time All-Conference pick (three All-NE-10). Regarded as one of the top left-footed players in the country, Schwarz totaled 15 points on five goals and five assists for Franklin Pierce this fall. A three-time All-New England selection and former New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Rookie of the Year, Schwarz ranks tenth in program history with 81 career points and ninth with 28 career goals and 25 career assists.

Schwarz earned a Bachelor's Degree in management in December 2001 with a 3.64 cumulative GPA. He was named the College's Walter Peterson Male Student-Athlete of the Year last spring and also earned Verizon District I Academic All-America and NSCAA/adidas Scholar All-America honors. A member of the College's Business Club, Schwarz has volunteered his time at several local youth soccer clinics and completed an internship in the summer of 2001 with Major League Soccer's New England Revolution.

Franklin Pierce wrapped up its 2002 season with a 10-5-4 record overall, 6-3-4 in Northeast-10 play. The Ravens advanced to the NE-10 Tournament semifinals for the third-straight year since joining the Conference in 2000.