ANNVILLE, Pa. - Over the last two weeks, the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) announced their Senior Scholar-Athletes of the Year for their winter and spring sports. Among the honorees were a trio of Falcons, earning four total honors.
Esther Seeland led the way, claiming both the Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field accolades while
Brody Beiler and
Matt Knab were awarded the Men's Outdoor Track and Field and Men's Volleyball laurels, respectively.
All-time Messiah has earned the most MAC Senior Scholar-Athlete since the award was introduced prior to the 2000-01 academic year. Messiah has earned a total of 72 honors with 29 men's accolades and 43 women's honors.
The MAC honors one student-athlete per sport across both the MAC Commonwealth and MAC Freedom that is competing in their final year of eligibility. The selection process takes into account the academic and athletic accolades on both the conference and national level.
Esther Seeland - Women's Indoor Track & Field
Esther Seeland is a 13-time All-MAC honoree during the indoor season, including an 11-time individual champion (All-MAC First Team). Seeland is a three-time MAC Champion in the 800-meter run, mile run and 4x800-meter relay (2019, 2021, 2022). She also won the 400-meter dash and distance medley relay in 2022. She earned MAC Track Athlete of the Year honors in 2022 and Rookie of the Year honors in 2019. She holds the MAC record times in the 800-meter run (2:05.39), one mile (4:52.25) and the 3,000-meter run (9:47.41). Her 800 time is also an NCAA Division III record. Seeland is a three-time NCAA All-American at the Indoor Championship. She claimed the 2022 NCAA Division III Indoor 800-meter run national title.
Seeland is majoring in biomedical engineering with an expected graduation date in the spring of 2022. She currently holds a 3.99 grade-point average (GPA). Seeland is a two-time CoSIDA First Team Academic All-American (2020, 2021). She is also a two-time Academic All-MAC honoree.
Esther Seeland - Women's Outdoor Track & Field
Esther Seeland is a seven-time All-MAC honoree during the outdoor season, including a six-time individual champion (All-MAC First Team). Seeland is a two-time MAC Champion in the 800-meter run, 1,500-meter run and 4x400-meter relay (2019, 2021). She earned MAC Track Athlete of the Year honors in 2021 and Rookie of the Year honors in 2019. She holds the MAC record times in the 800-meter run (2:02.52) and 1,500-meter run (4:27.30). She led Messiah to MAC team titles in 2019 and 2021. Seeland is a two-time NCAA All-American at the Outdoor Chapionship. She claimed the 2019 and 2021 NCAA Division II Outdoor 800-meter run national titles.
Seeland is majoring in biomedical engineering with an expected graduation date in the spring of 2022. She currently holds a 3.99 grade-point average (GPA). Seeland is a two-time CoSIDA First Team Academic All-American (2020, 2021). She is also a two-time Academic All-MAC honoree.
Matt Knab - Men's Volleyball
Matt Knab (Beaver Falls, Pa.) is a three-time All-MAC selection, including back-to-back first-team honors in 2021 and 2022. Knab was recently named the 2022 MAC Player of the Year. Knab is a two-time AVCA All-America selection (2021, 2022). He led the Falcons to the 2021 MAC title and NCAA Championship berth.
Knab is working towards his master's in intercollegiate athletic leadership with an expected graduation date in 2023. He currently holds a 4.00 grade-point average (GPA). Knab is a two-time Academic All-MAC honoree.
Brody Beiler - Men's Outdoor Track & Field
Brody Beiler is a four-time All-MAC honoree, including two MAC individual titles (All-MAC First Team). Beiler won both the 1,500-meter run and 5,000-meter run at the 2021 outdoor championship. He was named the 2021 MAC Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year. Beiler went on to be an NCAA Division III All-American in the 800-meter run with a sixth-place finish.
Beiler is working towards his master's in higher education with an expected graduation date in the spring of 2022. He currently holds a 3.97 grade-point average (GPA). Beiler was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team and Academic All-MAC team in 2021.
