Oct. 31, 2008

Complete Release with List of Winners in PDF Format

IRVING, Texas - A record 13 Conference USA women's soccer players were named to the CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District teams on Thursday. To be eligible for Academic All-District honors, student-athletes must hold at least a 3.3 grade point average and be a sophomore in academic and athletic standing. The 13 selections are the most in league history, but C-USA placed 12 student-athletes on both the 2004 and 2005 All-District Teams.

Rice had a total of five selections on the District VI team, led by the junior tandem of forward Erin Scott and midfielder Shelley Wong who were both selected to the first team. As first team selections, Scott and Wong are now eligible to earn NCAA Academic All-America honors in women's soccer later this year.

Rice juniors Alexa Coralli and Kellen Schugart were named to the district's all-academic second team. Sophomore defender Stephanie Crain, a mathematical economic analyst, was selected to the third team. Rice is one of only two schools across the country to have five academic all-district selections in women's soccer in the University division.

Memphis placed three - senior forward Kylie Hayes, senior defender Kate Murphy, and sophomore midfielder Vendula Strnadova - to the District IV second team. Murphy is a three-time all-district selection and was named to the 2007 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America first team. Hayes also repeats as an all-district honoree and moved up from a third-team selection last season.

Houston had two honorees in District VI, as senior goalkeeper Shelby Scott join Rice's Erin Scott and Wong on the first team. Her Cougar teammate, junior midfielder Nikki Echeverria was named to the third team. Scott was named to the First Team for the second-straight year, and it marked the fourth year in a row that a Cougar was placed on the First Team.

UAB was represented on the All-District IV First Team by junior defender Danielle Blair. This marks the second consecutive season that Blair has been named to the Academic All-District team, having been selected to the third team a season ago.

Marshall senior Erin Johnson was also a first-team selection in District II. Johnson is a pre-med major and holds a 3.86 cumulative grade point average. She plans to attend medical school after graduation. She, too, is automatically placed on the national Academic All-America ballot.

Tulsa junior forward Jennifer Kacergis was named to the Academic All-District VI second team. The nursing major has started all 59 games of her career and led TU in scoring the past three years.

Scott, Blair and Murphy all maintain a perfect 4.00 grade point average. A complete list of honorees is attached.