ST. LOUIS - Former Saint Louis student-athlete Jenny Nalepa (Brighton, Mich./Brighton) is one of four Atlantic 10 Conference Postgraduate Scholarship recipients for the 2011-12 academic year. Nalepa will receive $5,000 to be applied toward her postgraduate education.

Nalepa earned a bachelor of arts degree in psychology, graduating cum laude in May. Beginning this fall, she will pursue a master's degree in sports psychology at Michigan State University.

Nalepa, who excelled for the Billiken tennis team, is the seventh Saint Louis student-athlete to be awarded an A-10 Postgraduate Scholarship. She joins Kelly Tessar (swimming and diving, 2006), Brad Byars (swimming and diving, 2008), Liz Fox (soccer, 2008), Lauren Olson (soccer, 2010), Whitney Roth (volleyball, 2010) and Hailee Elmore (tennis, 2011). SLU's seven recipients in its seven years of A-10 membership account for 25 percent of the scholarships awarded.

"Jenny was successful in reaching the three goals we have for every student-athlete in our program, which are to get results, grow as a person and have fun," SLU head tennis coach Jon Zych said. "She was named first-team All-Conference two consecutive years while earning mostly As in the classroom. She grew into the leadership role of team captain and had an amazing student-athlete experience.

"The SLU tennis program will greatly miss Jenny and all she brought to the table," Zych said. "I appreciate her, and earning the A-10 Postgraduate Scholarship is recognition of a job well done."

Nalepa, who played No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles and served as team captain during her senior season, was selected to the All-Conference first team as a junior and senior and was a second-team choice as a sophomore. She finished her three-year Billiken career with a 58-28 singles record, ranking 11th on SLU's all-time victories list, and a 48-34 doubles mark, good for a 12th-place tie in program annals.

On the Bills' all-time season lists, Nalepa's 19 doubles wins this year tied for seventh, while her 21 singles victories in 2010-11 tied for ninth. Her 6-1 career singles record in A-10 Championship competition includes a 3-0 ledger in 2011 that helped the Billikens capture the runner-up spot, the best conference tournament finish in program history.

Nalepa earned a place on the A-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll (minimum 3.5 grade point average) in four of six semesters after transferring from Western Michigan. She served as a volunteer at Karen House homeless shelter, volunteered at the 2011 U.S. Open Wheelchair Tennis Tournament and worked at the Institute for the Study of Youth Sports at Michigan State University in the summer of 2011.

The Atlantic 10 Conference Postgraduate Scholarship recognizes outstanding athletes, scholars and citizens who have been accepted for postgraduate study at a college or university. Recipients must have achieved a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale and participated with distinction in an A-10 championship sport for at least two years at his or her institution.