A Mount Mercy Academy senior has been named to Business First's 2014 All-Western New York Academic Team. Caitlin Matuszak (First Team) has qualified for this year's list of the 100 most outstanding high school seniors in the eight-county region.

Winners were chosen for their records of academic excellence, school leadership and community involvement. The top 25 were named to the First Team, 25 runners-up to the Second Team, and another 50 to the Special Mention list.

"This is a highly competitive award," said Jack Connors, president and publisher of Business First. "Think of it this way: We have about 20,000 high school seniors in Western New York this year, and we've picked only 100 for the Academic Team. That puts them in the upper one-half of one percent. They're the best and brightest students anywhere in this region."

Schools throughout the eight-county area were asked to nominate their smartest and most accomplished students for consideration by an eight-member committee, which included six admissions directors at area colleges and two Business First editors. A total of 122 schools responded with 419 nominees. (Each school was limited to four candidates.)

The complete list of 100 honorees -- along with their photos and profiles -- will be published in Business First's 2014-2015 Guide to Western New York Schools, which will hit newsstands on June 13.