June 22, 2006

- (from cosida.com) -

WALTHAM, Mass. -- Anne Bersagel (Greeley, Colo.), a senior from Wake Forest University, and Erin Powell (Beaver City, Neb.), a senior from Nebraska Wesleyan University, earned top honors on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® women's track & field and cross country teams announced Thursday.

Bersagel earned Academic All-America of the Year honors in the University Division and was named to the Academic All-America first team for a second consecutive year.

Bersagel, a three-time NCAA cross country All-American, placed 13th at the 2005 NCAA Championships and fourth at the 2005 NCAA Southeast Cross Country Regional Championships. Owner of a 3.94 grade point average as an economics and political science major, Bersagel is a recipient of one of the prestigious 2006 NCAA Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarships.

Powell, who was also a first-team Academic All-America honoree in 2005, is a seven-time All-America in track and field. She earned the honor three times this year, two resulting from the indoor season. A 12-time Great Lakes Valley Conference champion and 30-time all-conference performer, Powell also earned an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. She carries a 3.98 cumulative grade point average as an accounting major.

Powell and Bersagel were two of seven athletes selected for the Academic All-America first team for the second straight year, with the others being Caroline Bierbaum (Columbia), Laura Gerraughty (North Carolina), Serena Ramsey (Missouri), Shannon Wommack (Tennessee-Chattanooga) and Elaine Binkley (Denison).

The other University Division first team members include Angela Homan (Auburn), Jennifer Leatherman (Penn State), Melanie Schorr (Dartmouth), Beth Mallory (Alabama), Dara Altman (Florida), Michelle Prowse (Oklahoma State), Lacy Janson (Florida State), Emily Anderson (Rhode Island), Stacey Cowan (Notre Dame) and Ashley Selig (Nebraska).

Also named to the College Division first team were Mindy Erb (Ohio Northern), Ellie Fernandez (John Carroll), Natalie Hanson (Concordia (Minn.)), Hailey Harren (Gustavus Adolphus), Christine Hendricks (Calvin), Jenny Irwin (Ferris State), Laura Kline (Kutztown), Becca Kueny (Missouri-Rolla), Kristen Larson (Emporia State), Julie Nemergut (Edinboro), Angie Pfeiffer (Concordia (Minn.)), Kelly Richards (Edinboro), Missy Smith (Calvin) and Meghan Voiland (Augustana (Ill.)).

Seven of the 31 first-team selections have perfect 4.00 GPAs for their collegiate career, and 20 of the 94 total selections have been perfect in the classroom. Combined, the average GPA for the 31 first-teamers was a remarkable 3.869.

The Academic All-America Teams program honors 816 male and female student-athletes annually who have succeeded at the highest level on the playing field an WALTHAM, Mass.d in the classroom. Individuals are selected through voting by CoSIDA (the College Sports Information Directors of America), a 2,000 member organization consisting of sports public relations professionals for colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.

To be eligible, a student-athletes must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director. Since the program's inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 14,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA covering all NCAA championship sports.

ESPN The Magazine - winner of the 2006 and 2003 National Magazine Award for General Excellence - is a provocative and innovative sports publication. Full of insight, analysis, impact and wit, the oversized bi-weekly with a circulation of 1.9 million looks ahead to give fans a unique perspective on the world of sports.