Senior defenseman and team captain Keir Ross finds himself as one of 10 finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in men’s hockey. The honor goes to the NCAA Division I student-athlete senior who has noteworthy achievements in four areas — community, classroom, character and competition. In October Ross was named one of 20 candidates and now he is one of the two lone ECAC Hockey players who have made it to the final 10, joining Brown forward Jack Maclellan. Former Red forward Colin Greening ’10 won the award after his senior season.
Ross has made a name for himself on the ice since first coming to Cornell. During his freshman season with the Red, he earned a spot on the ECAC Hockey All-Rookie team after being one of the top contributing defensemen for his team. Ross has been a key player for Cornell, competing in the NCAA tournament twice during his first three years on East Hill. He has also been a strong defensive player for the Red, especially as a member of a penalty-kill unit that has been ranked in the Top-10 nationally for the past two seasons. During the 2010-11 season, Ross held a plus-12 rating, which ranked him second highest on the team. Ross was also one of the Red’s top penalty-killing defensemen last season, spending just 12 minutes in the box.
Outside of Lynah, Ross has risen to the top of his class. He was named to the ECAC Hockey Academic All-League team twice and earned the honor of Hockey Scholar Athlete for the Red last season. Studying human biology, health and society in the College of Human Ecology, Ross was named to the Dean’s list in 2010 for his high grade point average, 3.57. He works as a research assistant for the Cornell Veterinary College and is working on a paper that addresses a laser scanning imaging technique called multiphoton microscopy. The work he is doing will serve as the platform for his senior thesis for the nutrition department. Ross intends to apply to medical school following his graduation.
Media members, coaches and fans from around the nation will have the opportunity to vote for the candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the areas of community, classroom, character and competition. During the 2012 NCAA Men’s Frozen Four in Tampa, Fla., April 5-7, the winner will be announced.
Original Author: Lauren Ritter