For the first time in approximately 15 years, Peru State College (PSC) has student-athletes who earned Capital One Academic All-America® recognition.  On Monday, June 18, two student-athletes were named Monday as Capital One Academic All-America® College Division for Women's Cross Country/Track and Field.
     The Capital One College Division Academic All-America® men's and women's cross country/track and field teams are comprised of student-athletes from NAIA, Canadian and two-year institutions.
     Earning Second Team honors were Kesha Beethe (Tecumseh) and Danielle Prchal (Omaha), both members of the Bobcat cross country team.
    Beethe and Prchal were the only females from the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) to earn the recognition.  Central Methodist University had two male student-athletes to be named with one earning second team and the other third team.
    To be eligible for Academic All-America® consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by
his/her sports information director.
     Beethe's honors and activities during the year included being named an NAIA Daktronics Scholar-Athlete and as a Newman Civic Fellow by Campus for civic engagement.  Kesha is very active on the PSC campus, including being an ambassador for the Admissions Office.  Next week, Beethe will be one of over 60 members representing Nebraska at the Phi Beta Lambda National Leadership Conference in San Antonio, Texas.   Beethe is a senior majoring in sports management and exercise science.
     Also, an NAIA Daktronics Scholar-Athlete, Prchal was also a MCAC Scholar-Athlete and has been a Mathews Fusion Mentor for the past two years.  In addition, Danielle is a member of Phi Alpha Theta and helped organize and conduct a recent history research conference.  The social science education major, is a senior and will have one more year of eligibility remaining.  Prchal has been extremely busy volunteering  for a variety of campus and off-campus organizations.