Laura Roesler was named the 2014 USTFCCCA Outdoor Track Scholar-Athlete of the Year while Edward Cheserek picked up the honor of Indoor Track Scholar-Athlete, Tuesday, leading a flock of 19 Ducks to earn USTFCCCA All-Academic honors.
Roesler, a senior psychology major with a 3.54 cumulative GPA, earned the outdoor track award for the first time in her career, joining former teammate Jordan Hasay as the only Oregon women to have been named Scholar Athlete of the Year in track & field. The Fargo, N.D., native won the 800 meters national title at the NCAA Outdoor Championships and ran a leg of the third-place 4×400. She is a Finalist for The Bowerman Trophy, collegiate track & field’s highest individual honor.
Cheserek, a freshman business major with a 3.33 cumulative GPA, is the first men’s Scholar Athlete of the Year from Oregon since Galen Rupp swept the indoor and outdoor awards in 2009. In just his first collegiate season, Cheserek won both the 3000 and 5000 meters titles at the NCAA Indoor Championships, boosting him into contention for The Bowerman Trophy – which Rupp won in 2009 – as one of three Finalists.
Scholar Athlete of the Year Awards are determined from among those who earned All-Academic status and placed highest in individual events at the NCAA Championships. Those who earn multiple individual championship titles rank higher in the tie-breaking process, and cumulative GPA is weighed as the final tiebreaker to establish a winner.
The Women of Oregon had the third-most student-athletes represented on the all-academic list, with 12. Joining Roesler on the list is Mel Newbery (4.00 GPA), Alli Cash (3.91), Annie Leblanc (3.73), Maggie Schmaedick (3.62), Megan Patrignelli (3.58), Jenna Prandinie (3.58), Molly Grabill (3.51), Lauren Crockett (3.50), Rachel Sherrell (3.31), Therese Haiss (3.30), and Frida Berge (3.27).
Joining Cheserek on the men’s side is Sam Prakel (3.96), Tanguy Pepio (3.87), Bradley Laubacher (3.61), Matt Melancon (3.58), Marcus Chambers (3.55), and Tim Costin (3.54).
—from GoDucks.com