Aug. 11, 2008
Center Valley, Pa. - Nine Patriot League track and field student-athletes and two member institutions have been honored for their academic and athletic performance with selections to the 2008 U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division I All Academic Track and Field Team.
Navy had four student-athletes selected to the Men's team, while American, Bucknell and Lehigh each had one honoree selected.
Two Bucknell student-athletes are Women's All-Academic Team honorees, while Lafayette and Lehigh each had one selection. Both Bucknell and Lehigh were designated Men's and Women's All-Academic Team institutions.
The Midshipmen placed Craig Meekins, John Olson and Mark Van Orden on the team. Meekins, an international relations major, recently graduated with a cumulative 3.36 grade-point-average and a spring semester grade-point average of 3.73. Olson, a member of the 2008 Second-Team All-Patriot League, graduated this spring with a cumulative 3.35 grade-point-average and earned a degree in history. Van Orden currently holds the Patriot League title for the hammer throw and has earned a cumulative grade-point-average of 3.75 going into his senior season.
Steve Hallinan represented American on the Men's All-Academic Team. Hallinan, a 2008 selection on the Patriot League Track and Field Honor Roll, recently earned a business degree after posting a 3.85 grade-point-average for the spring semester.
Lafayette was represented by Janica Austin, a sophomore biology major. Austin, the reigning Patriot League 100-meter hurdles champion, posted a 3.57 spring semester grade-point-average.
Bucknell had three student-athletes honored by the USTFCCCA. Kevin MacLeod, a senior civil and environmental engineering major had a spring semester grade-point-average of 3.91. Recent graduates Amanda Mockbee, a psychology major with a 3.33 spring semester grade-point-average and Beverly Rogers, a physics major with a 3.90 spring semester grade-point-average, represented Bucknell on the women's team. The Bison also received institutional honors from the USTFCCCA, with the men's team posting a 3.11 overall grade-point-average and the women's team earning a 3.22 grade-point-average.
Lehigh student-athletes and Patriot League Academic Honor Roll members James Pachucki and Sarah Serwo were also selected to the respective All-Academic teams. Pachucki, a sophomore engineering major, posted a spring semester grade-point-average of 3.47. Serwo is a senior accounting major who posted a 3.86 grade-point-average. Lehigh also was selected to the institutional All-Academic teams, with the women's team posting an overall grade-point-average of 3.27 and the men's team earning a 3.06 grade-point-average.
Student-athletes who have compiled a minimum cumulative grade-point-average of 3.25 and have met either the NCAA Division I Indoor automatic or provisional qualifying standard or the NCAA Division I Outdoor regional or national qualifying standard in their event qualify for USTFCCCA honors. Teams must earn a minimum 3.000 cumulative grade-point-average to qualify for USTFCCCA recognition.
