Courtesy Salem State Sports Information

Salem State University senior basketball player Brian Clark of Deerfield, Mass., has been selected theMassachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference 2012 Male Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Clark, a Sport and Movement Science major, shared the honor with track and field standout Chris Kibler of Fitchburg State University.  Amanda Gricus, who starred in track and field at Westfield State University, was named the MASCAC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

The award is presented annually to male and female senior student-athletes who have excelled both academically and athletically while a student of a Massachusetts state university. To be considered for the award, a student-athlete must have achieved a least a 3.2 cumulative grade point average and be in his or her last year of athletic eligibility.

Salem State head coach Chris Harvey felt the honor was much deserved for his former captain. “Brian truly epitomizes the spirit of student-athlete, a hard working student on and off the court, a person of high character….he not only represents Salem State University but the quality of the MASCAC student-athlete.”

Clark, who won Salem State’s President’s Cup for the second year in a row as the school's top male-athlete, was a four-year basketball standout at Salem State. He led the Vikings to the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference regular season and post-season championships and NCAA Tournament. He was also named the MASCAC Player of the Year and was named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches All-Region team.  Clark finished his career with 1,636 points, which places him fourth on the all-time career scoring list at Salem State.

The two-time MASCAC Player of the Year led the Vikings with a 19.2 points per game scoring average from the forward position this year. He led the league if field goal percentage (.628) and was eighth in the conference in rebounding with a 6.1 rebounds per game average.