Calisch wins prestigious Roy W. LeClere Award

Grinnell College's Sam Calisch '10 (pictured) has won the prestigious Roy W. LeClere Award winner for academic excellence.

The award goes to the Midwest Conference male student-athlete who had the highest grade point average during his junior year while lettering in at least two league sports. It is named for Roy W. LeClere, a collegiate sports enthusiast whose passion for the MWC led friends and co-workers to originally sponsor the award as a memorial in his honor.

Calisch, a mathematics major, is the second Pioneer in a row to win the award after Henry Reich '09 won it in 2008.

In addition to excelling in the classroom, Calisch is also a standout on the Pioneers' cross country and indoor track and field teams. Calisch has seen the most success as a member of the cross country team. He earned all-conference status in his collegiate debut season, while running on a conference championship team, a title Grinnell has captured during all four of his seasons. Calisch has earned a total of three all-conference honors, including a runner-up performance in 2008. This performance helped the Pioneers earn just the third perfect score in league meet history.

In that same year, Calisch also ran to an All-Region finish and was an NCAA national meet participant. Calisch is currently a five-time Academic All-Conference award recipient and ranks 20th on the Pioneers' All-Time 8K cross country chart.

Carroll University's Michelle Weber won the Ruth Peterson Award, which goes to the top female student-athlete.