Bucknell University Athletics
Trio of Bison Named to Academic All-Patriot League Team in Women's Track & Field
2/25/2011 7:00:00 AM | Women's Track and Field
Feb. 25, 2011
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell track and field placed a league-best three athletes on the inaugural Academic All-Patriot League Team, it was announced on Friday. Sarah Bella (Mendham, N.J./West Morris Mendham), Kristin Bretscher (Farmingville, N.Y./Centereach) and Caroline Tolli (Lockport, N.Y./Lockport) were all recognized for their outstanding achievement in the classroom and in competition during the indoor track and field season.
The Academic All-Patriot League Team has been added for all sports beginning in the 2010-11 season to honor additional student-athletes who excel both on and off the track. The women's track & field team has 10 student-athletes. Student-athletes must have at least a 3.2 cumulative GPA and play an integral part in the team's success. Award winners are determined by a vote of the league's sports information directors who cannot vote for their own athletes.
Bella earns a spot on the team with a 3.40 GPA while majoring in biology. The junior, who is a member of the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll and Bucknell Dean's List, has been busy putting her academic background to use in the community. During her time at Bucknell, Bella has participated in the Geisinger January Plan shadowing doctors from a variety of specialties and volunteered in the operating room at Saint Barnabas Medical Center. She also volunteers with the Mendham Fire Department and First Aid Squad. On campus, Bella is a member of Bucknell Brigade, where she helps fundraise money and medical supplies for mission trips to Nicaragua, and Delta Gamma Sorority.
Bella's most recent athletic accolades came at last week's Patriot League Championships where she received First Team All-Patriot League honors after winning the shot put. The runner-up in 2010 to teammate Chelsey Musante, Bella won the event in 2011 with a season-best throw of 44-3 ¼. The title is not Bella's first, however. As a freshman she won the shot put and discus at the outdoor championships, making her the 2009 Rookie of the Meet.
Bretscher's spot on the all-academic squad comes thanks in part to a 3.78 GPA as a chemical engineering major and economics minor. The senior has been named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll and Bucknell Dean's List every term during her career. She was also inducted into Tau Beta Pi Honor Society for her outstanding achievement in engineering. Bretscher's work experience in her field includes a position as a process engineer at Air Products and Chemical Inc. and as a teaching and research assistant in Bucknell's engineering department.
On the track, Bretscher posted the best result of her career in the pentathlon at the Patriot League Championships. The co-captain placed fourth last weekend with a career-best 3,114 points, which ranks ninth all-time at Bucknell. Bretscher also competed in the open long jump, placing 15th with a season-best mark of 16-6 ½.
Tolli has maintained perfection in her academic career to date. The sophomore has a perfect 4.0 GPA through three semesters while majoring in both education and Spanish. Her success has earned her multiple spots on the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll and Bucknell Dean's List as well as in the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society.
A middle distance runner, Tolli helped Bucknell's 4x800 relay to a fourth-place finish at the Patriot League Championships. The quartet's time of 9 minutes, 5.27 seconds ranks 10th in program annals. Tolli has also excelled at the 1,000 meters this season. Her best finish came at the Penn State National Invitational where she placed third and recorded one of the fastest times in Bucknell history.
Colgate's Elise DeRoo was named the 2011 Scholar-Athlete of the Year for women's indoor track and field.
Bucknell placed second as a team at the Patriot League Championships last weekend. While the Bison have one eye toward the upcoming outdoor season, several athletes are also looking toward the ECAC Championships next month. Nearly a dozen Bison have qualified for the championship meet in Boston March 5-6.
2011 Female Scholar-Athlete: Elise DeRoo, Colgate
2011 Female Academic All-Patriot League Team
Erin Koch, American
Sarah Bella, Bucknell
Kristin Bretscher, Bucknell
Caroline Tolli, Bucknell
Elise DeRoo, Colgate
Katelyn Hartnett, Holy Cross
Kelly Clyde, Lafayette
Katherine Pierce, Lehigh
Brigid Byrne, Navy
Liz Milewski, Navy
