March 29, 2005

St. Louis, Mo. - Saint Louis placed nine student-athletes on the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) national academic squad. The student-athletes were nominated by their coach and achieved a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.30 through the first semester of the 2004-05 academic year.

"I am indeed pleased with our team's performance in the classroom," said head coach Maria Whitehead. "The selection is a tribute to their ability to excel in the classroom and on the field."

The student-athletes include junior midfielder Carin Boone (Loveland, Ohio/Ursuline), freshman forward/midfielder Catherine Donovan (St. Louis, Mo./Cor Jesu Academy), junior forward Kelly Hellenga (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville), sophomore midfielder/forward Angela Lombardo (St. Louis, Mo./Nerinx), senior forward Marissa Lynn (Aurora, Colo./St. Francis), junior midfielder/back Jill Mueller (Cincinnati, Ohio/Ursuline), senior forward/midfielder Ellen Rapp (St. Louis, Mo./Ursuline Academy), sophomore midfielder/back Michelle Sinclair (St. Louis, Mo./Cor Jesu Academy) and junior midfielder/forward Jamie Smeland (Louisville, Ky./Assumption).

"I am extremely proud of their discipline and dedication in the classroom," said Amber Moyer, director of academic services. "They deserve this award for their commitment; and the selection illustrates that our field hockey team lives the University mission."

In February, the Billikens earned the NFHCA Division I National Academic Team Award. That program recognizes those institutions that achieved a team GPA of 3.0 or higher during the first semester of the 2004-05 academic year. The Billikens' fall team GPA was 3.325.

The Billikens are a member of the eight-team NorPac conference. Of the 477 women named to the national academic squad from 79 D-I institutions, NorPac teams accounted for 62 student-athletes. Saint Louis will join the Atlantic 10 Conference for Fall 2005 competition. The A-10 had 65 student-athletes selected to the squad from its seven field hockey teams at La Salle, UMass, Rhode Island, Richmond, Saint Joseph's, Temple and West Chester.