TWO OTAHKIANS REPEAT AS GTE ALL-AMERICANS

Southeast Missouri State University softball standouts Christine Engelhardt and Jenny Oermann continue to prove their excellence in the classroom as well as on the field.

Thursday, the pair earned repeat selections to the GTE Academic All-America team -- with Engelhardt becoming the first Southeast athlete to be named to the squad for three straight years.

Engelhardt, a pitcher, was named to the first team 1999 GTE Academic All-America softball squad after being a second-team selection last year and a first-team selection as a sophomore in 1997.

Oermann, the Otahkians' shortstop, was named to the GTE Academic All-America second team for the second straight year.

Engelhardt and Oermann, who completed their eligibility this year, were two of the top players on a Southeast softball team that won the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season and tournament championships and advanced to the NCAA Division I Tournament for the first time in school history.

Engelhardt had a 16-5 record and a 1.35 earned-run average this year while maintaining a cumulative grade-point average of 3.96 in elementary education.

Oermann, named earlier this week as the OVC Female Athlete of the Year who was also the 1999 OVC Player of the Year for softball, batted .409 while maintaining a 3.81 cumulative grade-point average in elementary education.