Four Student-Athletes Named To Academic All-District At-Large Squads

MADISON, N.J. - Four Landmark Conference female student-athletes have been honored with selection to the Academic All-Distric At-Large Teams by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) in a program sponsored by Capital One.

The Catholic University of America claimed a pair of selections with senior two-sport standouts Tracey Scanlon and Mary Swarthout earning the honors and Juniata College field hockey standout Caitlyn Bowman and swimmer Carolyn Gillespie of The University of Scranton  also being honored. All four athletes were selected to the first-team in their respective districts.

This marks Bowman's second selection to the Academic All-District team after a second-team honor in 2011. She tallied the third most goals on the team during the 2011 season with six goals and added two assists, finishing fourth on the team in total points with 14. Bowman finished her career with 15 goals, eight assists and 38 points. A three-time Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll selection and a Fall 2010 Landmark All-Academic Team selection, Bowman interned at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Northeast Fisheries Science Center conducting research and recently received Juniata's John E. Blood Award for highest senior student-athlete GPA coupled with significant athletic achievement. Bowman will continue her education at Johns Hopkins University in its PhD program beginning in the fall of 2012.

Gillespie, who holds a 3.77 grade point average in Exercise Science was a dominating presence in the pool during her four-year tenure in a Royal uniform. She earned first-team all-Landmark Conference honors all four years and was named the conference's rookie of the year in 2009 in leading Scranton to the first of two conference titles (2009, 2010). She won four conference individual championships (50 free {2011}, 100 free {2011}, and 100 butterfly {2011, 2012) and seven relay titles (200 free (2009, 2012), 200 medley (2009, 2011, 2012), and 400 medley (2011, 2012). In addition, she holds four individual records and four relay records. She also posted 60 first-place finishes in dual-meet competition to lead Royals of head coach Paul DeAngelo to a 41-5 record (.891). On May 12, Gillespie was named the female recipient of the O'Hara Award at the university's Senior Student-Athlete Banquet. This award is presented annually to the outstanding athlete of the senior class. In the classroom, Gillespie was named to the Dean's List every semester and was inducted into the Phi Epsilon Kappa Exercise Science Honor Society. She was also named to the Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll three times and was one of two female winter sport student-athletes from The University of Scranton to be selected to the conference's all-Academic team (2012).

A two-sport standout, Scanlon graduated with a marketing degree and a 3.73 GPA. She earned Dean's List, Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll and NFHCA National Academic Squad honors in multiple years and was voted the winner of the Distinguished Marketing Award, which is awarded to the most outstanding marketing student at CUA. Scanlon was also a member of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society. On the field, Scanlon was a three-time All-Landmark Conference selection in field hockey, and in 2011 she became the first First Team All-American in field hockey in school history, while helping to lead CUA to its first conference title and NCAA Tournament appearance. Scanlon was also named the conference's Player of the Year, and a first team All-Conference and All-Region selection. In softball, Scanlon was a two-time All-Conference honoree and wrapped up her career with 102 hits, 79 runs scored, 41 RBIs, 16 stolen bases and a 94.1 fielding percentage.

A nursing major who graduated with a 3.7 grade point average, Swarthout recently put the touches on one of CUA's most distinguished academic and athletic careers. A native of nearby Rockville, Md., Swarthout helped lead the women's lacrosse and field hockey teams to five championships during her time in the red and black. Swarthout is a three-time All-American in women's lacrosse, earning First Team honors in 2011, and she captured the 2010, 2011 and 2012 Landmark Conference Player of the Year awards. Swarthout is also a four-time First Team All-Region and All-Conference selection in lacrosse. On the field hockey field, Swarthout was a two-time First Team All-Conference pick, a two-time All-Region selection and a 2011 Third Team All-American. She finished her career with 36 goals, 25 assists, 97 points and 13 game-winning goals. In the classroom, Swarthout earned multiple selections to the Dean's List, Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll, NFHCA National Academic Squad and IWLCA Honor Roll. She is a member of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society, and was the recipient of the 2012 Marion Award (second most outstanding senior female student at CUA) and the 2011 Mary J. Flynn O'Dwyer Award (most outstanding female student at CUA, junior class). In addition, she served as the Vice President of SAAC and was involved in a number of service efforts, including MLK, Jr. Day of Service, A Wider Circle, U.S. Armed Forces Retirement Home, Special Olympics and Friends of Jaclyn.

To be eligible for the Academic All-District squad, nominees must have at least a 3.30 GPA on a 4.00 scale, have played in at least 50 percent of their team's games at the position for which they've been nominated, and must have at least sophomore athletic eligibility. The four honorees were selected from two different districts.

The At-Large team includes student-athletes not represented on other Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District/All-America teams in individual sports; sports included in the At-Large category include field hockey, tennis, golf, ice hockey, water polo, and skiing.

The Academic All-District teams are selected by voting of all CoSIDA members in each district, while a national committee selects the Academic All-America squad.

Story provided by Catholic, Juniata, and Scranton Sports Information