Fifty-Four Toros Student-Athletes Recognized on 20th Annual National STUDENT-Athlete Day
April 6 event commemorates excellence in competition, classroom and community
April 10, 2007

Carson, CA -- Fifty-four outstanding Toros student-athletes were recognized by the NCAA as part of the 20th Annual National STUDENT-Athlete Day, celebrated annually on April 6. These student-athletes, encompassing all 11 CSUDH sports, received this honor based on both their minimum 3.0 GPA and active involvement in the surrounding community.

Recently CSUDH celebrated the 20th Annual National STUDENT-Athlete Day, along with schools across the country. The Toros softball and baseball teams had members honored.

National STUDENT-Athlete Day, celebrated annually since its inception in1987 and currently presented with the NCAA and the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), was created by the National Consortium for Academics and Sports (NCAS) and Northeastern University’s Center for the Study of Sport in Society, and is America’s day to celebrate outstanding student-athletes who have achieved excellence in academics and athletics while having made significant contributions to the community, also recognizing parents, teachers, coaches and universities which help student-athletes bridge the gap between academics and athletics.

In addition to the community service each sport contributes throughout the year, women’s basketball’s Ree Browne (Torrance, CA/South Torrance HS) and cross country’s Valarie Tucker (Downey, CA/El Camino College) were recognized for their involvement with the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

Women’s soccer and softball shared top team honors with nine student-athletes each on the list, followed by volleyball and baseball with seven apiece. Of the 54 student-athletes, women’s soccer boasts two athletes with perfect 4.0 GPAs in Sandy Lloyd (Fountain Valley, CA/Fountain Valley HS) and Candace Hearn (Whittler, CA/Whittier HS), who are joined by softball’s Jessica Marlow (Huntington Beach, CA/Edison HS) and volleyball’s Jenise Espindola (Lake View Terrace, CA/Pierce College) with 4.0 marks, while Tucker at 3.92, and track and field’s Shammeer Dawson (Los Angeles, CA/El Camino College) at 3.83 and Judith Fisher (Chesilhurst, NJ/WInslow Township HS) at 3.80 round out the top Toro GPAs.