Nov. 30, 2005

ABILENE, Texas - Hardin-Simmons junior Virginia Aguilar has been named to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA College Division Academic All-American First Team in voting by CoSIDA members around the nation.

The Kahlheo, Hawaii native has a 4.0 GPA in computer science. She was also named the American Southwest Conference Player of the Year and was one of only seven players on the first team. The college division covers players at the NCAA Division II, III and NAIA levels.

"Virginia is the type of student-athlete we want all of our kids to be," said HSU head coach Hugh Hernesman. "She works hard in the classroom and then when it is time for practice or weights or a game she is the hardest worker we have on the court. She totally exemplifies what you look for in a student-athlete.

Aguilar is one of four first-team Academic All-America® selections with 4.00 GPAs on the seven-member first team. The others with 4.00 GPAs are Lindsay Harksen of Linfield College, junior outside hitter Rebecca Brezovec of Wingate, senior outside hitter Marian Broderick of Missouri Western.

Rounding out the first team in the college division are Elmhurst College senior outside hitter Nicole Carlson (3.96), senior setter Katya Khmelnitskaya of New York University, and Emily Roth of the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia, the Central Collegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year. Khmelnitskaya was a second-team Academic All-America selection in 2004.

The Academic All-America® Teams program honors 816 male and female student-athletes annually who have succeeded at the highest level on the playing field and in the classroom. Individuals are selected through voting by CoSIDA, the College Sports Information Directors of America; a 2,000-member organization consisted of sports public relations professionals for colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.

To be eligible, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director. Since the program's inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 14,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA covering all NCAA championship sports.

ESPN The Magazine - winner of the 2003 National Magazine Award for General Excellence - is a provocative and innovative sports publication. Full of insight, analysis, impact and wit, the oversized bi-weekly with a circulation of 1.85 million looks ahead to give fans a unique perspective on the world of sports.

For more information about the Academic All-America Teams program, please visit www.cosida.com or e-mail rlipe@bentley.edu.