FORT MYERS, FL – The FGCU Department of Athletics has announced its seventh pair of 2019-20 monthly academic honorees. Swimming and diving sophomore Wiktoria Czarnecka and baseball's junior Brian Ellis were named Scholar-Athletes of the Month for February.

A female and male Eagle are chosen as the FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athlete of the Month throughout the academic year. Factors in the selection for this honor include a combination of significant athletic and overall academic success.

Czarnecka (Lublin, Poland/Liceum NR 10 W Lublinie) carries a 3.82 GPA while majoring in Psychology with a minor in Management. Since stepping foot on campus last season as a freshman, she's made the Dean's List and Athletic Director's Honor Roll each Fall and Spring semester, and is heavily involved with the Honors College program.

Most recently during her run at the CCSA Championships, the Poland native became the eighth-straight Eagle to take home the 50-yard free event. Czarnecka touched the pads in a personal-best time of 22.40 seconds. On top of her first-place finish, she earned a silver medal as part of the 400-yard free relay team and captured bronze individually in the 100-yard free as the Eagles placed second overall at the championship meet.

"A big congratulations to Tori for this deserving honor," said head coach Dave Rollins. "Not only is she a champion in the pool, but her commitment and dedication to her academics reflects the values of our program and something for each of her teammates to strive for."

Ellis (Oviedo, FL/Hagerty HS) majors in Health Science and holds a 3.72 GPA. He's a five-time Athletic Director's Honor Roll member, a two-time Dean's List honoree and one-time President's List recipient.  

Ellis was one of four Eagles to make a start in each of the 16 games before the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 national emergency which cancelled the remainder of Spring competition for FGCU Athletics. In those 16 games, Ellis was second in batting average hitting at a .321-clip with four doubles, one triple and five RBI. His .493 on-base percentage was a team-best as he led the team in stolen bases (7-for-7) and walks (14).

"Brian is so deserving of this type of recognition," said head coach Dave Tollett. "He embodies everything we want this program to be both on and off the field. It's hard to think of anyone that fits this honor better."

2019-20 Scholar-Athletes of the Month
August – Dana Axner (Volleyball) and Jahan Rajaee (Men's Soccer)
September – Evdokia Popadinova (Women's Soccer) and Marcelo Tebet (Men's Tennis)
October – Lindsey Patton (Women's Soccer) and Kareem Riley (Men's Soccer)
November – Cortney VanLiew (Volleyball) and TC Anderson (Men's Soccer)
December – Keri Jewett-Giles (Women's Basketball) and Caleb Catto (Men's Basketball)
January – Ailsa Clark (Women's Golf) and Hunter  McGarry (Baseball)
February – Wiktoria Czarnecka (Swimming & Diving) and Brian Ellis (Baseball)

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ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 81 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 12-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just eight-plus seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 38 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including women's basketball (2019-20) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2018 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for twenty-one consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall semester saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.