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Stewart earns NAIA Scholar-Athlete honors

Malik Stewart

MITCHELL, S.D. – Dakota Wesleyan University senior Malik Stewart wrapped up a successful wrestling career for the Tigers Friday when he was eliminated from the NAIA Wrestling National Championships, but Saturday Stewart added one more great honor when he was named a Daktronics/NAIA Scholar-Athlete for his outstanding performance in the classroom.

Daktronics Wrestling Scholar-Athletes

To receive Scholar-Athlete honors, a student-athlete must be a junior in good academic standing, must have attended his current school for at least one full year and must have a grade point average of 3.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale. Stewart is just the second DWU wrestler to earn NAIA Scholar-Athlete honors in his career and the first since 2000, when Jason Grindstaff also received the distinction.

However, this isn’t Stewart’s first honor for his academic performance. The senior from Hot Springs, S.D., is also a two-time NWCA-NAIA Academic All-American, and he could earn that honor for a third-straight year this year.

On the mat, Stewart will graduate from DWU at No. 8 on the school’s all-time wins list with a career record of 50-80. He is a three-time national qualifier and he finished his senior season with an 18-19 overall record at 133 pounds.

This season, Stewart was one of only 32 wrestlers in the entire NAIA to earn Scholar-Athlete honors, and only one of seven wrestlers in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. The University of Great Falls had the most Scholar-Athletes with six, and Morningside College was second with five.