(Posted November 4, 2010)

HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- Juniata College Senior setter Steph Strauss (Penn Hills, Pa./Penn Hills) has been named to the ESPN College Division Academic All-District First Team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

As a first team selection, Strauss now becomes a candidate for the Academic All-America team, which is scheduled to be announced on November 22.

Strauss, a sports marketing and management major, is both a Sports Information intern and a J-Club athletic development office intern. She is also president of the Juniata Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) where she is working to improve the presence of athletics on the Juniata campus. She is also a two-time Landmark Academic Honor Roll selection, and the 2009 NCAA "Elite 88" Award winner for the Division III Women's Volleyball Championship.

On the court, Strauss earned American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Second team All-America honors in 2008 and 2009, and was a First team All-Landmark selection last season. She has played in 29 matches this season, where she has recorded 160 kills, 842 assists (9.79 per set), 169 digs (1.97 per set), and 28 blocks. She is currently second in the Landmark Conference in assists.

Strauss also organized the "Dig Pink Match" in 2008, 2009, and 2010, where she raised over $10,000 to support breast cancer research. She was a participant at the NCAA's 2010 Career in Sports Forum, held this past summer.

To be eligible for the Academic All-District squad, nominees must have at least a 3.30 GPA on a 4.00 scale, have played in at least 50 percent of their team's games at the position for which they've been nominated, and must have at least sophomore athletic eligibility. The College Division includes student-athletes at the NCAA Division II and III levels, as well as NAIA and junior college, and District II includes all institutions in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia.

The Academic All-District teams are selected by voting of all CoSIDA members in each district, while the Academic All-America squad is selected by a national committee.

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Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.