Feb. 20, 2002

SAN BRUNO, Calif. - Santa Clara University senior guard Becki Ashbaugh earned her fourth West Coast Conference All-Academic honor, leading a list of three Broncos who earned recognition, the league announced today.

Ashbaugh, a senior guard from Bellevue, Wash., carries a 3.59 GPA in Operation Management and Information Systems. Joining Ashbaugh in representing the Broncos is two-time honoree Caroline Gruening, a senior guard from Juneau, Alaska, a Combined Sciences major with a 3.77 GPA, and first-time selection Kendra Rhea, a junior forward from Lakeside who is carrying a 3.25 GPA in Electrical Engineering.

To be considered, a student-athlete must earn at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average while also being a significant contributor to his or her team.

This past summer in the latest NCAA Graduation Rate Report of student-athletes, the West Coast Conference ranked fifth in overall student-athlete Graduation Rate. The WCC boasts a 69.5 percent student athlete-graduation rate, which is the highest of any Division I conference west of the Mississippi.

The Santa Clara women (17-8, 7-5 WCC) return home for the final two league contests of the season, hosting Loyola Marymount on Thursday and Pepperdine on Saturday. The Broncos put their 10-0 record at the Leavey Center on the line as they fight for a second-place finish in the conference standings.

The contest against the Lions is also "Take a Kid to the Game Night", where youth will be admitted for $2 with an adult. On Saturday, the athletic department will honor the team's two seniors, Gruening and Ashbaugh, while also celebrating Fan Appreciation Day. Game times are 7 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively.

2002 Women's Basketball WCC All-Academic Team