June 5, 2009

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Belmont senior women’s cross country and track runner Mollie Schlarman (Southgate, Ky.) was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Team as announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) this week.  It is the first time in her career she has received the honor and the fourth time a Belmont women’s cross country/track and field athlete has been named to the elite list.

A standout in the classroom throughout her collegiate career, Schlarman earned the highest GPA of all Belmont female cross country and track and field student-athletes during the 2008-09 academic year.  The eight-time Atlantic Sun All-Academic Team honoree helped lead Belmont to its third consecutive Atlantic Sun Cross Country Championship in 2008.  Among her other athletic accolades, Schlarman earned All-Conference honors with a third-place finish in the Mile Run at the 2008 Atlantic Sun Indoor Championships, finishing 18th of 188 at Evansville Cross Country Invite in 2008, and being the highest Bruin to place at Vanderbilt Invite (2008), 11th of 77. 

Most recently, Schlarman was named a finalist for the 2009 National STUDENT-Athlete Day Giant Steps Award in the category of Courageous Student-Athlete.

Schlarman graduated in May with a 3.98 GPA with a B.S. in Biology with a concentration in Pre-Physical Therapy.

Schlarman will be placed on the national ballot for ESPN The Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-America teams; teams will be announced later this month.