Dec. 2, 2008
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Northern Illinois student-athletes continue to earn recognition for excellence in the classroom, as the Mid-American Conference selected three Huskies to the Academic All-MAC Cross Country Team, Tuesday.
Seniors Meghan Ginter and Denisse Valladares, along with sophomore Breanna Brevitt each earned honorable mention accolades for their athletic and academic performances.
Ginter (Aurora, Ill./Waubonsie Valley) holds a 3.93 grade point average in nutrition and dietetics. She was the top-finisher for NIU at the Illini Challenge, taking 24th. She placed 24th again at the Huskie Open, and anchored the Huskies at the Illinois Intercollegiate Championships. Ginter placed 28th to help the team to a ninth place finish out of 25 teams. She was the second Huskie to cross the finish line at the Griak Invitational and scored for NIU as the team's fifth place finisher at the Bradley Cross Country Classic. Ginter also scored at the MAC Championships.
A health education major with a 3.38 GPA, Brevitt (Dixon, Ill./Dixon) opened the season as the fifth Huskie to cross the line at the Illini Challenge. She scored again at the Huskie Open, and placed fourth among NIU racers at the Illinois Intercollegiate Championships. Brevitt took second on the team at the Roy Griak Invitational, with a six-kilometer time of 24:02 and placed third for NIU at the Bradley Cross Country Classic. She again ran second for the Huskies at the MAC Championships.
Valladares (Mt. Prospect, Ill./Hersey) is studying elementary education and holds a 3.22 GPA. She finished second among NIU runners at the Illini Challenge with a 26th-place finish and placed fourth among Huskie athletes at the Huskie Open. Valladares finished fifth on the team at the Griak Invite, and placed second for the Huskies at the Bradley Cross Country Classic. She also ran third for NIU at the MAC Championships.
For Ginter, the honor is another in a long line of academic awards. Last season, she was named to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District Track and Field/Cross Country team, and in 2006-07, she was named to both the Academic All-MAC Track and field and Cross Country teams.
The MAC All-Academic honor is for student-athletes who have excelled in athletics and academics. To qualify, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA and have participated in at least 50 percent of the races. First-year students and junior college transfers in their first year of residence are not eligible for the award.
