Four SFA Athletes Named to Academic All-SLC Teams
6/22/2006 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
June 22, 2006
PLANO, Texas - Four Stephen F. Austin student-athletes were named to the Capital One Southland Conference Track and Field All-Academic Teams, announced Wednesday by conference officials. Crystal Chang and Katrina Nicholas made the women's team, while Lumberjacks Ryder Peacock and Rodney Joseph were named to the men's squad.
Chang, a senior and chemistry major with a 3.47 grade-point average, is making her third appearance on the academic all-conference team. A six-time career All-SLC selection, Chang was named to the all-conference teams for both the indoor and outdoor seasons this year. The Decatur, Texas native finished second in the pentathlon at the conference indoor championships and went on to a 12th-place finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships. She set the school pentathlon record three times during the indoor season, the last time coming at the Intermountain Championships, when she scored 3,963 points to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Chang continued her success during the outdoor season. She posted an NCAA qualifying mark of 5,266 points in her seventh-place finish at the Texas Relays, then won the Southland Conference championship in the heptathlon with a score of 5,255 points.
Nicholas was named to the academic all-conference team for the first time, after posting a solid outdoor campaign. She improved on her personal best in the 3,000-meter steeplechase twice, the second time earning all-conference honors with a third-place time of 11:07.75. The Natchitoches, La. native carries a 3.91 grade-point average in her hearing impaired major. Earlier this year, she was named to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District Team as a second-team selection in District 6.
Joseph's selection to the academic all-conference team marks the fourth academic honor of his career. The health science major is a two-time Southland Conference Cross Country Student-Athlete of the Year and was named to the all-academic team following the 2005 track and field season. Joseph scored points for the Lumberjacks in both distance events at this year's conference outdoor championships. He earned all-conference honors with his second-place showing in the 5,000 meters and finished fourth in the 10,000. During the indoor season, Joseph recorded a fifth-place finish in the 5,000 meters at the SLC Indoor Championships. The Decatur product has a 3.58 GPA.
Peacock, a junior from Woodson, Texas, earned academic all-conference recognition in his first season to compete in the SLC. The kinesiology major with a 3.67 GPA had an immediate impact on the conference in his debut campaign, earning all-conference honors in both the indoor and outdoor seasons. Peacock won the high jump championship at the conference outdoor meet with a height of 6-08.75. His height of 6-06.75 was good enough for second place at the indoor championships.
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