Five athletes from the Occidental College women's water polo team have received All-Academic awards from the 2010 Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches.
Oxy Tigers Rachel Adeleye '13 from Elizabeth, N.J., and Julie Monday '11 from Carlsbad, Calif., earned "Outstanding" All-Academic awards for logging GPAs between 3.71 and 4.0. They were two of only 20 such students honored this year by the national water polo coaching organization. Karie Nickle '11, who hails from Honolulu, Hawaii, earned a "Superior" All-Academic award with a GPA between 3.41 and 3.7. Anaheim native Tessa Bailey-Findley '12 and Lauren Howarth '13, from Albuquerque, N.M., earned "Excellent" standing with GPAs between 3.2 and 3.4.
The College ranked ninth in team cumulative grade point average (3.21) out of 25 colleges recognized in this year's ACWPC awards. Macalester College topped the list with a team GPA average of 3.52, while UC Davis rounded out the list at 25th (3.01).
After a disastrously slow start, the Tigers turned it around and went all the way to the May 9 NCAA Division III national championship match against fellow Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference team Cal Lutheran. The Regals eventually won the match, 10-5.
Occidental ended the 2010 season with a 17-17 record and were ranked No. 3 behind SCIAC champion Pomona-Pitzer and Cal Lutheran in the year's final Division III poll. Nickle and Monday were also First Team All-SCIAC and All-Tournament picks, while Bailey-Findley was a Second Team selection in both SCIAC and the nationals.
For more information about Oxy's women's water polo team, go to: http://www.oxyathletics.com/sports/wwaterpolo/index.
