Ball State University Athletics
Ali Bishel Named To Academic All-MAC Squad
March 31, 2009 | Track & Field
MUNCIE, Ind. - - Ball State junior distance runner Ali Bishel (Chesterton, Ind./Chesterton H.S.) has been named to the 2009 Women's Indoor Track & Field Academic All-Mid-American Conference Team as announced today by the league office.
To be eligible for Academic All-MAC honors, a student-athlete must have excelled in athletics and academics. To qualify, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative grade-point average and have participated in at least 50% of the contests for that particular sport. First-year students and junior college transfers in their first year of residence are not eligible for the award.
Bishel, a landscape architecture major with a 3.72 GPA, was named the Most Outstanding Female Track Performer at the 2009 MAC Championships after winning both the 3000m (9:43.23) and 5000m (16:39.80) races at the meet. Her time in the 5000m was an NCAA Provisional Qualifying mark, while both clockings were the fastest in the MAC this season. By winning both events, Bishel also earned First Team All-MAC status for the indoor campaign.
Bishel, who also placed ninth in the mile (4:58.64) at the league championship meet, is no stranger to academic accolades, picking up Academic All-MAC honors for cross country, indoor and outdoor track & field last season. A redshrit for the 2008-09 cross country season, Bishel was also named to the 2008 U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic Team after her sophomore season.
A total of 31 student-athletes were named to the women's team, as voted on by the faculty athletic representatives at MAC institutions. The number of honorees on the Academic All-MAC Team are the number that is set for the specific sport or 33% of the number of nominees, whichever is greater. The remaining student-athletes have been recognized as Academic Honorable Mention selections.
Six members of the BSU indoor track & field team were named to the Academic Honorable Mention squad; Brittany Ade (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Dwenger H.S.), Lisa Arrowsmith (Livonia, Mich./Stevenson H.S.), Thekla Lorenz (Hamburg, Germany), Ra'Jae Marable (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer H.S.), Lauren McNichols (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central H.S.) and Tyra Schantz (Bloomfield, Ind./White River Valley H.S.).
Players Mentioned
