LANCASTER, Pa. --- Moravian College junior defensive back Nick Zambelli has been selected as the 2017-18 Centennial Conference Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
The Centennial Conference recognizes a Scholar-Athlete of the Year in each of its 24 championship sports to a junior or senior member of the All-Conference team with the highest cumulative grade point average. Zambelli was named the Scholar-Athlete for football last November. The overall Scholar-Athletes of the Year are presented to the student with the highest GPA among the 12 men and 12 women's winners.
Zambelli , who was selected to the 2017 College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America Football First Team for NCAA Division III schools, is majoring in Economics and Computer Science with a minor in Mathematics at Moravian, and he has a 4.00 GPA. He also earned a spot on the Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll for the second straight fall and was a member of the All-Centennial Team in the fall for making the All-Conference and Academic Honor Rolls.
Last fall, Zambelli made 70 tackles to finish third on the Moravian team, and his total included 44 solo stops, one tackle for loss and one sack as he was selected to the Centennial All-Conference Second Team. Zambelli also recorded six passes defended including three interceptions, two fumble recoveries and a forced fumble. He was named the Greyhounds' Most Valuable Player in the season finale at rival Muhlenberg College after a career-high 13 tackles and an interception on the goal line. Zambelli, who has been a three-year starter at Moravian and was a co-captain for the Hounds in 2017, has registered 164 tackles with 106 solo stops, seven interceptions, 17 passes defended, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, one tackle for loss and one sack in 31 career contests.
"Nick's hard work and dedication in the classroom, as well as on the field, has put him in an elite category of student-athletes," stated Head Coach Jeff Pukszyn. "I am very proud of his commitment to being the best he can be academically and athletically. Nick is an outstanding role model and great ambassador of Moravian Athletics. Centennial Conference Scholar Athlete of the Year is an outstanding achievement and I couldn't be more excited for Nick."
Zambelli will begin his senior season with the Greyhounds on Saturday, September 1 when Moravian hosts King's College in the 2018 season opener at Rocco Calvo Field with a 1:00 p.m. kickoff.
