League-Leading 15 KU Men Named to Academic All-Big 12 Teams
IRVING, Texas – A total of 24 Kansas student-athletes were named to the 2014 Academic All-Big 12 Men’s & Women’s Track & Field Teams, the league office announced Wednesday. The Jayhawk men led the league with 15 honorees along with their nine first team selections. The Kansas women added nine to the Academic All-Big 12 lists and joined 112 female student-athletes, including 96 first team members and 16 second team honorees. On the men’s side, 77 earned honors, with 53 first team and 24 second team selections.
Nine Jayhawk men were placed on the first team, and were led by senior Kellum Schneider, who was one of five Big 12 track & field athletes to earn a perfect 4.0 GPA. Three KU men: seniors Dalen Fink, Josh Munsch and Nick Seckfort, earned spots on the first team for the third time in their careers. Junior Aaron Blevins was named to the first team for the second time, while junior Jonathan Miller and redshirt freshmen Ben Brownlee, Daniel Koech and Jaime Wilson all took home the first team accolades for the first time.
On the women’s side, seven KU student-athletes earned a spot on the first team. Seniors Natalie Becker, Timmie Morris and Abby Row were honored on the first-team list for the third-straight year. Junior Jaimie House was added to the first team for the second time and Jayhawks earning a first-team nod for the first time included junior Lindsay Vollmer and sophomores Rhavean King and Hannah Richardson.
Six Kansas men and two Jayhawk women were second-team selections. For the men, seniors Alex Bishop, Conner Day, Teddy Oteba and Brendan Soucie, junior Austin Hoag and sophomore Nick Maestretti were all named to the team. For the women, senior Amanda Caines and sophomore Sydney Conley also made the second-team list.
Nominated by each institution’s director of student-athlete support services, the track & field academic all-league squad consisted of 150 first-team members combined with 56 on the second team. First-team members consist of those who have maintained a 3.20 or better GPA, and the second team are those who have a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.
To qualify, student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher either cumulative or the two previous semesters and must have participated in 60 percent of their team’s scheduled contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Senior student-athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except percent of participation are also eligible.
This weekend the Jayhawks travel to Lubbock, Texas, for the 2014 Big 12 Outdoor Track & Field Championships, taking place May 16-18 at the Fuller Track & Field Complex on the campus of Texas Tech University.
KUAthletics.com: The official online source for Kansas Athletics, Williams Education Fund contributions, tickets, merchandise, multimedia, photos and much, much more.
