June 11, 2005
SAN BRUNO, Calif. - Santa Clara University cross country standout Robin Bell and University of Portland basketball player Andreas Gahlmann are the recipients of West Coast Conference Post-Graduate Scholarships, league commissioner Michael Gilleran announced.
Bell is no stranger to athletic and academic success. She is graduating from Santa Clara University with an amazing 3.96 Grade Point Average (GPA) in mechanical engineering with Summa Cum Laude distinction. The Spokane, Wash. native was a three-time WCC All-Academic member and a four-time member of Santa Clara's School of Engineering Dean's List. A four-year letterwinner and two-time team captain on the Broncos' cross country team, Bell led SCU to four top four finishes at the WCC Championships, including the program's first-ever conference title in 2001. Bell was named the 2001 WCC Freshman of the Year and earned All-WCC first team honors in 2001 and 2003, and honorable mention status in 2002. In 2004, Bell was awarded the Santa Clara Cross Country Commitment Award. She guided the Broncos to four consecutive NCAA West Regionals during her time at SCU. Bell will be attending Stanford University in the Fall of 2005.
Gahlmann graduated from the University of Portland with a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Chemistry and a minor in Mathematics. Gahlmann's cumulative GPA was an impressive 3.77. In 2005, Gahlmann was named to the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association Scholar-Athlete team. In addition, Gahlmann is a two-time WCC All-Academic member and was named to the Dean's List all four years at Portland. In 2004, Gahlmann earned UP's William Wilson Chemistry Award. Gahlmann played in 68 games, starting 46 of them, earning three varsity letters while on the Bluff. This past season, Gahlmann started 29 of the Pilots' 30 games, helping Portland to its best record since the 1995-96 season. Gahlmann will be attending Cal Tech in the Fall of 2005.
Committed to promoting the educational experience and academic achievements of its student-athletes, the WCC provides one male and one female student-athlete with a scholarship to assist them in their graduate school or professional school education. Candidates must own a minimum 3.5 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale, demonstrate a significant athletic contribution on the varsity athletic level in a WCC sponsored sport and participate in a WCC sport for a minimum of two years. In addition, candidates must have a record of participating in campus or community activities, completed their athletic eligibility, and competed in intercollegiate athletics in the academic year in which they are nominated.
