Southeast students receive OVC Medals of Honor

Seventeen Southeast Missouri State University athletes claimed Ohio Valley Conference Medals of Honor for the 2008-2009 academic year, the league announced Tuesday.

The Medal of Honor is given annually to the athlete who achieves the highest grade-point average in a conference-sponsored sport.

Southeast's 17 honorees came from a total of 122 around the OVC. All had perfect 4.0 GPAs in 2008-2009.

Southeast's baseball team led the way with six winners, tops in the OVC. Winners were Kody Campbell, Greg Dambach, Kyle Gumieny, Jim Klocke, Josh Syberg and Andrew Wiese.

Alyssa Aston, Molly Davis and Paige Dossey were winners from volleyball, while Amy Warren and Lauren McNamara represented women's track.

Warren also was a winner for cross country, giving her four straight awards in both track and cross country for a total of eight OVC Medals of Honor.

Joel Krause and Christopher Loseman represented men's track, with Loseman also winning for cross country.

Kristi Frick (soccer) and Rachel Blunt (women's basketball) rounded out the honorees, with Blunt being awarded her fourth straight Medal of Honor.

In other academic awards, the Southeast men's cross country team and men's track team received the OVC Team Academic Achievement Award, given annually to the squad with the greatest percentage of athletes on the OVC Commissioner's Honor Roll.

A total of 126 Southeast athletes made the Commissioner's Honor Roll, which requires a 3.25 GPA or better.

Southeast gymnastics had the most athletes on the Commissioner's Honor Roll as all 17 were honored. Gymnasts were not eligible for Medals of Honor because the OVC does not sponsor that sport.

Austin Peay won the OVC Institutional Academic Achievement Award presented annually to the institution with the greatest percentage of its athletes on the OVC Commissioner's Honor Roll.

Morehead State, which had won the previous four awards, was second.