Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Valparaiso University senior Jackie Kondratko (Granger, Ind./Penn H.S.) has been named an ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America First Team selection as chosen by CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America).

Kondratko, a senior mechanical engineering major, carries a 3.95 cumulative grade point average and helped lead the Crusaders to a runner-up finish in the 2009 Horizon League Soccer Championships.  On the field, Kondratko shared team-high honors with seven goals and finished the year with 18 points, second most on the squad.  Four of her seven tallies resulted in match-winning goals.

For her career, Kondratko finished with 13 career goals, seventh most in school history, while her 33 career points are tied for seventh most all-time at Valpo.  Her career concluded with six match-winning goals, tied for fifth on the all-time charts.

In the classroom, Kondratko is a two-time ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District V First Team selection as well as a member of the Horizon League All-Academic Team as a junior.  The last two years she has been named to the league’s Fall and Spring Academic Honor Rolls as well.

Kondratko is the first women’s soccer player in program history to earn First Team Academic All-America honors and just the fifth in school history for any sport.  Jackie Thomas was a Third Team Academic All-America pick in 2007.

To be eligible for Academic All-District and Academic All-America, student-athletes must hold at least sophomore status, own a minimum grade-point average of 3.20, and be either a starter or key reserve.  District V consists of schools in Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Ontario, and Manitoba.