MADISON, N.J. – The Landmark Conference has chosen six athletes as Landmark Senior Scholar Athletes for their respective fall sports. A committee of Landmark Conference officers, athletics directors and sports information directors selected the recipients, choosing one senior from each of the fall sports sponsored by the conference. The honorees must have a cumulative GPA of 3.2 and are selected based on their accomplishments in all areas of college life including athletics, academics and other extracurricular activities.

The 2008 Landmark fall sport Senior Scholar Athletes are: Men’s Cross Country: J.J. Brooks (Cogan Station, Pa./Meadowbrook Christian), Susquehanna University; Women’s Cross Country: Laura Gausmann (York, Pa./West York), Susquehanna University; Field Hockey: Rosemary Dixon (Ardmore, Pa./Country Day School of the Sacred Heart), The Catholic University of America; Men’s Soccer: Isaac Laubach (Millville, Pa./Millville), Susquehanna University; Women’s Soccer: Ann Mularz (Linden, N.J./Linden), Drew University; Women’s Volleyball: Amber Thomas (Ephrata, Pa./Conestoga Valley), Juniata College.

Brooks helped Susquehanna claim the Landmark Men’s Cross Country Championship for the second-consecutive season as he earned first-team All-Conference honors with a fourth-place finish at the Landmark meet. He improved nine places from his junior season when he was a second-team All-Conference performer with a 13th-place finish. Brooks has been a staple on the Landmark seasonal All-Academic Teams, earning spots on the team in the fall, winter and spring of last year, and then capturing a place on the fall 2008 team as well. He is pursuing a degree in accounting and has also found a place on the Landmark Academic Honor Roll four times.

Gausmann enjoyed a strong season as a senior, helping Susquehanna win the Landmark Women’s Cross Country Championship this fall. She was a co-captain for the 2008 championship team, and placed 10th at the Landmark Championships to earn second-team All-Conference recognition. It was her second time earning second-team All-Landmark status. She has been a constant on the Landmark Academic Honor Roll and was a Landmark All-Academic selection in the spring and fall of 2008. A political science major with a stellar GPA, Gausmann is a member The Political Science Honor Society and was also a member of the 2007 U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Division III all-academic team

Dixon capped a stellar career by earning third-team All-America status from both the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) and the website womensfieldhockey.com and was chosen to play in the NFHCA Senior All-Star Game. She was voted the Landmark Field Hockey Defensive Player of the Year in 2008, was a first-team All-Region choice, and claimed first-team All-Conference status for the second-consecutive season. Off the field Dixon is pursuing a degree in nursing and was a two-time member of the Landmark Academic Honor Roll. She is a teaching assistant for Community and Environmental Nursing at Catholic and spent two weeks as a volunteer in Africa last May for an HIV awareness program.

Laubach was a co-captain for the Susquehanna team that won the Landmark Men’s Soccer Championship this fall, and also capture the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament berth. He earned NSCAA/adidas All-Region recognition for the second time in as many seasons, and was also picked as the Landmark Men’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Year. He earned All-Conference honors each of his four collegiate seasons, including first-team All-Landmark honors each of the past two years. A finance major, Laubach was named a second-team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District performer and earned NSCAA/adidas Scholar All-America recognition in 2007.

Mularz has starred on and off the field for the Drew women’s soccer team as she capped her playing career by being named the Landmark Defensive Player of the Year this fall. She also claimed NSCAA/adidas All-Region recognition following her senior year, and was a first-team All-Landmark pick after leading the conference in shutouts. She was also an All-Conference choice in 2005, and was voted the Drew MVP three times. Off the field, Mularz maintained a stellar GPA while working towards a degree in chemistry. She earned ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America honors this season and was a two-time ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District pick. She was named to the Drew Dean’s List each semester of her career.

Thomas ranks as one of the most accomplished athletes in the history of the Juniata women’s volleyball program. She was selected as the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division III Player of the Year in 2007 and 2008, making her just the fourth back-to-back winner in the award’s history. She was a four-time All-American, including three first-team selections, and was the Landmark Player of the Year in 2007 and 2008. Thomas was named the ESPN The Magazine Volleyball Academic All-American of the Year this fall. A communications major, she earned Dean’s List honors each of the past three semesters, volunteers with the Special Olympics and is a member of the National Communications Honor Society.

The Landmark Conference will select a Senior Scholar Athlete in each of the 20 varsity sports sponsored by the conference over the course of the 2008-09 academic year.