Southeast Missouri State honors top student athletes

Dustin Davis, Lauren McNamara, Jacqueline Heath and Erica Moore all made their mark as impressive Southeast Missouri State athletes over the past several years.

Those four also achieved academic excellence, which was recognized Tuesday night when they earned top honors during Southeast's All Sports Year-End Celebration at the Show Me Center.

Davis won the Jewel Award, while McNamara, Heath and Moore shared the Trombetta Award, given annually to the graduating senior male and female athletes with the highest grade-point averages for their career.

"I couldn't be more pleased," said Davis, a cross country and track distance runner from Edwardsville, Ill., who carries a 3.90 GPA in secondary education English. "It was a nice surprise."

Davis, who will graduate May 14, was a winner of the Ohio Valley Conference's Scholar-Athlete Award for 2009-10, earning the highest individual honor that can be earned by OVC student-athletes.

The award is given annually to three men and three women junior or senior student-athletes for their accomplishments in both the classroom and athletic arena as well as their leadership qualities.

"I put in a lot of work and it's nice to be rewarded," Davis said about his academics.

Davis, who has earned multiple all-OVC honors for both cross country and track, has been especially challenged the past several months.

Davis began the school year as a student teacher at Zalma High School. That became a full-time job in January after the teacher he was working under died.

"I drive 45 minutes each way every day and teach a full class load," Davis said. "I'm not sure how I've gotten everything done, but I'm running personal bests so I'm not complaining."

And Davis already has a job lined up. He will remain at Zalma to teach English.

The three females honored attained perfect 4.0 marks.

"It's an honor. It really hasn't hit me yet," said McNamara, a native of Breese, Ill., who is a pole vaulter for the track team. "I had no idea I would get this. It's exciting."

McNamara, carrying a double major in news broadcasting and Spanish, is a two-time OVC Medal of Honor winner for achieving the highest GPA in a conference-sponsored sport. She should make it three when this year's award is announced soon.

"It's hard [to juggle athletics and academics] but I've always been a student who got involved with everything, even in high school," said McNamara, who will graduate May 14.

McNamara, who has her sights set on a job in media relations, carried on a family tradition by winning the Trombetta Award. Her older brother Mark, a former Southeast distance runner, claimed the Jewell Award in 2008.

"It's awesome. I'm sure my parents are proud," she said.

Heath, from St. Cloud, Minn., and Moore, a native of Murfreesboro, Tenn., helped Southeast gymnastics rank among the nation's top academic teams for several seasons.

Heath, majoring in applied mathematics and physics, is a four-time NACGC Scholar Athlete who was a member of three straight academic national championship squads.

"It's always an honor to win an award for academics. I feel that's important," Heath said about Tuesday's accolade. "It was a surprise. I didn't even know about it."

Heath's career was hampered by injury that caused her to miss most of the past two seasons, but she still ranks third on the program's all-time bars list with a 9.9. She was an all-Midwest Independent Conference selection as a freshman.

Heath, also set to graduate May 14, will attend graduate school at Ball State for biomechanics. She said her class work at Southeast has been challenging but rewarding.

"It's been tough, especially because my major is pretty intensive," Heath said. "But I love learning and I love school."

Moore, a pre-physical therapy major, is a three-time NACGC Scholar Athlete who was on two of Southeast's academic national championship teams.

"It is exciting," Moore said about Tuesday's award. "I had forgotten about it."

Moore, another slated to graduate May 14, is headed to Tennessee-Chattanooga to continue working toward becoming a physical therapist. She said academics always have been a priority.

"I've always tried to do my best at school. It's always been important. My parents made it a big deal," Moore said. "Our coaches have always emphasized school comes before gymnastics. I've just always tried to do my best."