June 1, 2006

SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Following a 15-month layoff due to injury, Shannon Bell not only successfully returned to the running paths this fall, but also continued her superlative achievements in the classroom. For her outstanding efforts both athletically and academically, it was announced Thursday by CoSIDA that Bell was named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District VIII first team.

Bell's athletic achievements in 2005-06 included a second-place finish at the WCC Championships in October, completing the 5,000-meter course in 18:10 to lead the Bronco women to third place and equal the best finish by an SCU harrier at the conference finals. She also turned in a fifth-place effort at the Santa Clara Invitational and finished 59th at the NCAA West Regionals.

Academically, the Spokane, Wash. native carries an eye-popping 4.0 cumulative grade-point average while majoring in Combined Sciences, pacing Santa Clara's top academic squad in the women's cross country team. The team carries a combined GPA of 3.4 to pace all Bronco athletic teams.

"Shannon Bell is an example of the prototypical student-athlete," said cross country head coach Tom Service. "We have so many student-athletes who carry outstanding GPAs in our program here at Santa Clara, but Shannon is the perfect example of achieving excellence in the classroom and also, in her case, on the cross country course."

"The fact that Shannon was able to come back and have an outstanding finish at the WCC championships after such a long layoff shows both mental and physical toughness, which goes hand-in-hand with her academic achievements," Service added.