Junior Drew Cozzolino has joined 138 other athletes from around the country earning an academic All-American honor for exceeding in both athletics and academics this year.

For students who strive for this honor, the award is no walk in the park.

“You have to submit your gpa, your grades, your record for the wrestling season and your overall record to be considered,” Cozzolino said adding that the award is given through the National High School Coaches Association.

The NHSCA states that “to qualify, you must carry at least a 3.4 grade point average on a 4.0 scale and also be a state tournament place-winner or selected as all-state in an athletic aspect at least once during your high school career”. Cozzolino admits that it is not always easy to succeed in both.

“There are times when it [being a student athlete] does become difficult,”Cozzolino said. “In terms of trying to be fully focused on athletics when you need to be and being fully focused on academics when you need to be, you just need to be able to switch on and off between the two.”

Metro West United Wrestling Club stated that, “he [Cozzolino] is a two-time state placewinner, finishing sixth as a sophomore and fourth as a junior and has season record of 46-10 and a current career record of 111-32. Drew has a current GPA of 3.9 and is ranked #14 in his class.”

“He brings the same commitment to excellence to his academic schedule with demands of AP and honors classes,” Varsity Wrestling coach Brian Kramer said. “Andrew has shown to be an exemplary model of sportsmanship and respect for others. I have the absolute confidence that he will compete and conduct himself with humility on and off the mat.”  

While going through the tough ordeal of being a student athlete Cozzolino does have people in his life that support him and help him achieve greatness.

“My parents are really supportive of me, especially during wrestling season,” Cozzolino said. “My coaches are also really influential in terms of pushing me to do better and also staying on top of me when it comes to academics and school as well.”

“He takes setbacks on the mat as opportunities to succeed,” Kramer said. “These challenges motivate him and in turn his teammates to work harder in the wrestling room.”

Heading into his senior year Cozzolino would like to achieve many more goals next to becoming an Academic All-American in his wrestling career.

“In terms of wrestling I definitely want to become a state champ and I’m also looking to break the schools win record so I’m aiming to finish around 150 wins,” Cozzolino said.