John 'Jack' Bauer of Cumberland, R.I. Tabbed as a CoSIDA Academic All-American

2017 Jun 6

WPI senior Tim Petri and sophomore John Bauer were named Academic All-America at-large selections, as voted upon by select members of the College Sports Information Directors Association of America. Petri earned second team honors while Bauer landed on the third.

Petri, a computer science major, became the first WPI student-athlete to earn the coveted Elite 90 award, which is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's championships. He received his invite to the NCAAs as part of the 14th-seeded 400-yard medley relay. When the competition began, Petri set records in the relay, as well as the 100- and 200-yard breaststrokes. He also owns the Engineers' 50-yard breaststroke standard.

In addition to All-America honors in the 200-yard medley relay and honorable mention AA accolades in the 400-yard medley and 200-yard breaststroke, Petri is a six-time All-NEWMAC second teamer as a four-time 400-yard medley relay and two-time 200-yard medley relay runner up. The Charles O. Thompson Scholar was a Crimson Key tour guide and founding vice president of the Investment Association. He is also a member of Phi Kappa Theta fraternity and Upsilon Pi Epsilon honor society. His IQP involved a transportation smartphone app study in Namibia and is working with Microsoft for his MQP.

Bauer, the 2017 NEWMAC Co-Swimmer of the Year and chemistry & chemical engineering double major, won the 100-yard butterfly and 100-yard backstroke titles and was a three-time runner up. He made the trip to the NCAAs where he earned All-America honors in the 100-yard backstroke and 200-yard medley relay to go with an honorable mention AA in the 400-yard medley relay.

As the NEWMAC Rookie of the Year in 2016, Bauer was a member of the NEWMAC Champion 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard medley relays, and runner up 400-yard medley and freestyle relays. The repeat department award winner set four records at the national event and one at the conference championships for a total of five.

Today's announcements bring the department total to six CoSIDA Academic All-Americas, which ties the annual record, with four remaining on the track & field national ballot.

About Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Founded in 1865 in Worcester, Mass., WPI is one of the nation's first engineering and technology universities. Its 14 academic departments offer more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science, engineering, technology, business, the social sciences, and the humanities and arts, leading to bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. WPI's talented faculty work with students on interdisciplinary research that seeks solutions to important and socially relevant problems in fields as diverse as the life sciences and bioengineering, energy, information security, materials processing, and robotics. Students also have the opportunity to make a difference to communities and organizations around the world through the university's innovative Global Projects Program. There are more than 40 WPI project centers throughout the Americas, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Europe.