BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference announced today the 2015 award winners of the Mike Augustin Scholarship. Macalester cross country and track and field athlete, Eliza Ramsey was one of four MIAC students to receive the award this academic year. The scholarship honors the late St. Paul Pioneer Press Sports Writer Mike Augustin and is awarded to students with a passion for education or communication and who dedicate both time and energy to being a student.

Read the complete MIAC release below.
(Link: http://www.miacathletics.com/news_links/2014-15_News/081215_augustin_scholarship)

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- Late St. Paul Pioneer Press Sports Writer Mike Augustin was a tremendous friend to the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) and its members, so it was fitting that all four recipients of the 2015 Mike Augustin Scholarship are all students at MIAC institutions.

Macalester College's Eliza Ramsey, Saint Mary's University's Cale Pieczynski and Katie LeTourneau and Bethel University's Kelly Hinseth were announces as the winners of the 2015 Mike Augustin Scholarship on Monday, Aug. 3, at the annual Mike Augustin Scholarship Golf Tournament. Each will receive a $500 scholarship to assist with their current pursuit of their degrees in the fields of communication studies or education.

According to the scholarship announcement: "The Mike Augustin Scholarship fund [was] created in honor of the former St. Paul Pioneer Press sports writer. Augustin covered Minnesota sports for many years. He was especially fond of the Minnesota schools and their emphasis on a liberal arts education. Believing in the importance of acknowledging the fine accomplishments of those who dedicate both time and energy in being a student, the Mike Augustin scholarship fund is offering four $500 scholarships to qualified applicants."

This year, those "qualified applicants" all came from the MIAC, and three of the four are current MIAC student-athletes. Ramsey is a middle distance runner on the Scots track and field team and she also competes on Macalester's cross country team. Ramsey has served as a communications assistant in the Scots' athletic department and as sports editor of The Mac Weekly, and her writing has been featured on the MIAC web site.

Pieczynski is a pitcher and infielder for the Saint Mary's baseball team, and he currently works as a sports writer at the Portage County Gazette after completing sports reporting and broadcasting internships. LeTourneau is a defender on the Cardinals' women's hockey team and was an All-Conference Honorable Mention pick in 2014-15. She is pursuing a degree in Elementary Education and works as summer staff worker at Oneka Elementary in White Bear Lake, Minn., and has also been a t-ball coach for four years.

Hinseth is also involved in athletics at Bethel, as she serves as a student football manager. She also works as a staff writer at the university's newspaper, The Clarion, where she primarily covers Royals' athletics.

In order to be eligible for the scholarship, students must be enrolled full time at a Minnesota college or university, and must be entering their junior or senior year. They must have a major interest in the fields of communication studies or education, and must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or above. Each applicant provides a one-page essay, a letter of recommendation, a current transcript and the scholarship application.

Augustin's has other direct ties to the MIAC, as the conference presents the Mike Augustin Award annually in his memory. Since 1999, the award has been presented each year to recognize outstanding contributions to MIAC athletic programs and their student athletes. Recipients of the award are chosen by MIAC Sports Information Directors.

Augustin, who died after a sudden illness in 1997, was an articulate friend, follower and advocate of the MIAC. He respected Division III institutions, student-athletes and coaches.