June 24, 2009

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. --- The Mountain West Conference named 117 University of New Mexico student-athletes to the Spring 2009 Academic All-Mountain West Conference Team on Tuesday. The Lobos recorded the second-most honorees among the nine MWC members.

A record number 772 winter and spring sport student-athletes received the honor. MWC winter and spring sports include men's and women's basketball, men's and women's swimming & diving, men's and women's golf, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's track & field, baseball and softball. To be eligible for selection, student-athletes must have completed at least one academic term at the member institution while maintaining a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better, and be a starter or significant contributor on their athletic team.

Eight Lobos honored are maintaining a 4.0 or better - women's basketball players Amanda Best and Lauren Taylor, men's golfer Jon Sauer, women's swimmers Maria Dudley and Nanette Wittenberg, men's track & field athlete Chad Clark, and women's track & field athletes Hagit Salamon and Vanessa Strobbe.

15 seniors earned the honor for the fourth time in their UNM careers - Dane Hamilton (baseball), Bobby Moore (baseball), Chad Toppert (men's basketball), Angela Hartill (women's basketball), Mikaela Backstedt (women's golf), Katrina McLoughlin (women's swimming & diving), Graeme Kassautzki (men's tennis), Johnny Parkes (men's tennis), Mackenzie White (women's tennis), Jarrin Solomon (men's track & field), Ariel Burr (women's track & field), Whitney Johnson (women's track & field), Stasia Ploskonka (women's track & field), Hagit Salamon (women's track & field) and Vanessa Strobbe (women's track & field).

Spring 2009 UNM Academic All-Mountain West Conference Team Honorees
* = repeat honoree

Baseball
* Mike Brownstein - Sr., Psychology
* Clinton Cox - Sr., Chemistry
* Daniel Grubbs - Sr., Business Administration
*** Dane Hamilton - Sr., Communications
* John Hesketh - Sr., Economics
Brandon Hewett - Sr., Mass Communications
*** Bobby Moore - Sr., Business Administration
Jason Oatman - Jr., University Studies
* Max Willett - Jr., Business Administration

Men's Basketball
** Roman Martinez - Jr., Business Administration
*** Chad Toppert - Sr., Business Administration

Women's Basketball
* Amanda Adamson - Sr., Psychology/Communication & Journalism
** Amy Beggin - Jr., Communication & Journalism
* Amanda Best - So., Biology
Sara Halasz - Fr., Undeclared
*** Angela Hartill - Sr., Business Administration
* Jessica Kielpinski - So., Exercise Science
Nikki Nelson - Fr., Biology
Lauren Taylor - Fr., Undeclared
Eileen Weissmann - Jr., Business Administration

Men's Golf
James Erkenbeck - Fr., Undeclared
James Gehrke - Fr., University Studies
** Nick Geyer - Sr., Communication & Journalism
Shane McDonald - Fr., Communication & Journalism
* Jon Sauer - Sr., Business Administration
** Steve Saunders - Sr., Business Administration
Ryan Smith - Fr., Undeclared
Alex Zannes - So., Political Science

Women's Golf
*** Mikaela Backstedt - Sr., Business Administration
** Jodi Ewart - Jr., Psychology
Rebecca Hellbom - Fr., Undeclared
Erin Miller - So., Business Administration
Sarah Salvo - Fr., Undeclared

Softball
Cristin Anderson - Jr., Communications & Journalism
* Erin Brandow - Jr., Exercise Science
Shenise Cox - Fr., Undeclared
Jessica Garcia - Fr., Undeclared
** Katie Gilmore - Jr., Elementary Education
Kerry Hodgins - Fr., Undeclared
** Samantha Hughes - Sr., Business Administration/Marketing
Jessica Lujan-Dresslar - Fr., Undeclared
** Analise Rubalcava - Sr., University Studies

Women's Swimming & Diving
Brittany Anderson - Fr., Undeclared
* Sally Bellinger - So., University Studies
Aubrey Bush - Fr., Undeclared
Jocelyn Colella - Fr., Undeclared
Maria Dudley - Fr., Undeclared
Nicole Esquibel - Fr., Undeclared
Sasha Evangulova - Jr., Communication & Journalism
Tonya Gramstad - Fr., Undeclared
* Ashley Grisdale - Jr., University Studies
Asala Halag - Fr., Undeclared
Kelli Light - Fr., Undeclared
Alexandra Lusk - Jr., Psychology
Tesse Maciejko - Fr., Undeclared
*** Katrina McLoughlin - Sr., Exercise Science
Melissa Neary - So., Exercise Science
* Bridget O'Hara - Jr., English/Spanish
** Jennifer Patterson - Jr., Nursing
Nicole Peirce - Fr., Undeclared
Erica Stuart - Fr., Undeclared
* Nanette Wittenberg - So., Business Administration

Men's Tennis
Phillip Anderson - Fr., Undeclared
Ben Dunbar - Fr., Undeclared
*** Graeme Kassautzki - Sr., Business Administration
Matthew Neeld - Fr., Undeclared
*** Johnny Parkes - Sr., University Studies

Women's Tennis
** Ola Abou-Zekry - Sr., Economics/Psychology
Ashley Bonner - So., Political Science
* Emma Hayman - So., Business Administration
** Maria Sotirchos - Sr., Psychology
* Victoria Tessmar - So., Business Administration
*** Mackenzie White - Sr., Nutrition/Dietetics

Men's Track & Field
Mat Ashton - Sr., Sports Administration
Chris Barnicle - Jr., Language, Literacy & Sociocultural Studies
David Bishop - Jr., Sports Administration
Chad Clark - Fr., Undeclared
Lee Emanuel - Sr., Sports Administration
Rory Fraser - Jr., Sports Administration
* Brock Hagerman - Jr., Social Studies Education
** Kyle Henry - Jr., Biology
** Matthew Henry-Marshall - Jr., Political Science
Ross Millington - Fr., Electrical Computer Engineering
Patrick Ortiz - Fr., University Studies
* Jason Petty - So., Mechanical Engineering
Allen Pittman - Fr., Undeclared
Wes Ross - Fr., Electrical Computer Engineering
Connor Schneider - Fr., Undeclared
*** Jarrin Solomon - Sr., Communications
Thomas Trujillo - Fr., Undeclared
* Kyle Walker - So., Business Administration/Organizational Management
** Alex Willis - So., Architecture

Women's Track & Field
Nicky Archer - Jr., Physical Education
Laura Bowerman - Sr., Physical Education
** Lynn Brasher - Jr., University Studies
*** Ariel Burr - Sr., Psychology
* Michelle Corrigan - Sr., Economics
Alex Darling - Fr., Psychology
Polina Ermoshina - Jr., University Studies
Ashley Gibson - Jr., Physical Education
*** Whitney Johnson - Sr., Psychology
Rachel Kelchner - Fr., Undeclared
Sara Lee - Fr., Art Studio
** Leslie Luna - Sr., Exercise Science
* Aditi Majumdar - Jr., Exercise Science
Amber Menke - Fr., Undeclared
** Kim Perkins - Jr., Architecture
*** Stasia Ploskonka - Sr., Exercise Science
Emma Reed - So., Geography
*** Hagit Salamon - Sr., Biology
* Asal Salehpoor - So., Nursing
** Brittany Smith - Sr., Business Administration
*** Vanessa Strobbe - Sr., Journalism/Mass Communication
** Sarah Swartwood - Sr., Speech and Hearing Sciences
* Tami Williams - So., Psychology and Family Studies
Andrea Wright - Sr., Computer Engineering
** Deanna Young - Jr., Psychology/Criminology