May 28, 2007

DALLAS (SMU) - The 2007 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Men's and Women's At-Large Teams were announced as four SMU athletes were honored. Jenny Basel of the women's swim team was selected to the first team while Kate Ackerson of women's golf, Ellen Cieszkiewicz of women's rowing and Ian Clark of men's swimming were all selected to the District 6 second team.

To be nominated, the student-athlete must be a starter or important reserve with at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average for his/her career. No athlete is eligible until he/she has reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at his/her current institution. In the at-large program, nominations are limited to three per school per gender.

A sophomore on the women's swimming and diving team, Jenny Basel was selected to the Academic All-America first-team. This season, she was named to the C-USA All-Academic team. Basel holds the best time on the team in 200 breast and 200 IM and swam most of her season-best times at the C-USA Championships. She helped guide SMU to a second consecutive C-USA Championship crown and a first-place title at the Kerr McGee Elite Meet and SMU Swim Classic. She was named to the All-C-USA 200 IM and 200 breast first-team and 100 breast second-team. The native of Sterling, Va., is the two-time defending C-USA 200 IM Champion. She set new meet and pool records en route to her first-place finish in the 200 breast at the C-USA Championship. Basel is a 2006 All-American and was given a C-USA Commissioners Academic Medal and named to the C-USA Commissioners Honor Roll.

A sophomore member of the women's golf team, Kate Ackerson was named to the Academic All-America second-team. She is a two-time All-Conference performer and is ranked fourth in C-USA with a 74.44 stroke average over 27 rounds. The Allen, Texas, native carded a low round of 68 on the season and placed third at the C-USA Championships, earning All-Tournament honors. A two-time C-USA Golfer of the Week, she placed sixth or better at five of nine tournaments played. Ackerson boasts the highest GPA on an NCAA Public Recognition Award-winning team. She is a two-time C-USA Academic Medal winner and member of the Commissioner's Honor Roll as well as an NGCA All-American Scholar.

Ellen Cieszkiewicz, a junior on the SMU rowing team and a mainstay on the varsity eight this season, was named to the Academic All-America second-team. With the varsity eight, she claimed a sixth-place at the Head of the Oklahoma, first-place at the Head of the Colorado and fifth at Head of the Hooch. The Houston, Texas, native, rowed in the varsity eight that earned dual-race wins over Creighton and Alabama and first at the Midwest Intercollegiate Championship. She placed fourth in the varsity four at Head of the Colorado. Cieszkiewicz was recently elected team co-captain for the 2007-08 season. She was also honored as a Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) National Scholar Athlete. Last season, she competed in the second varsity eight and was named the team's Most Improved Varsity Rower.

Senior and 2006-07 captain of the SMU men's swimming and diving team, Ian Clark, was named to the Academic All-America second-team. He is a four-time All-American and helped guide the team to repeat as C-USA Invitational Champions and finish 18th at NCAA. Clark was also named to the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll. This season, he swam the fastest time on the team in the 200 back. He was named the C-USA Invitational Swimmer of the Meet after he claimed the 200 back title, won the 400 IM with a season-best and pool record time and was the lead off leg for the first-place 200 medley relay team that shattered the previous season-best time and set a new school record.