NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Patrick Waszczak (Colchester, Conn.), a senior pole vaulter on the Southern Connecticut State University men's track and field team, has been named the winner of the 2011 Northeast-10 Conference Men's Indoor Track and Field Scholar-Athlete Sport Excellence Award.

Waszczak captured All-American, All-Region and All-New England honors in the pole vault during the winter campaign. He was also the Northeast-10 Conference champion in the pole vault. He was also named to the Northeast-10 Men's Indoor Track and Field All-Academic Team for his efforts. Last year, he was named as an All-Academic Team pick by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

He is an exercise science major with a 3.33 grade point average.

The Northeast-10 Scholar-Athlete Sport Excellence awards are chosen by a vote of a committee of athletic administrators and Faculty Athletic Representatives (FAR). The Northeast-10 will honor one student-athlete per conference-sponsored sport each year. There will be a total of 23 Scholar-Athlete Sport Excellence Award winners during the course of the academic year. The conference will announce the spring sport winners in June.

To be eligible for the Scholar-Athlete Sport Excellence award the student-athlete must have completed at least two consecutive semesters of full-time enrollment at their current institution and at least two years of athletic eligibility at any institution. In addition, the student-athlete must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of a 3.30.