Keith Bechtol Named First-Team Academic All-District

Senior Will Cap Career Tonight at NCAA Championships

06/07/07 11:11AM

WILLIAMSBURG - William and Mary senior Keith Bechtol (Alexandria, Va.) was named to the CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District First Team today, the third consecutive year he has been so honored. Last year, Bechtol went on to be selected as a third-team Academic All-American, and advances to the national ballot again this year.

Bechtol was the top vote-getter on the District III first team, which includes schools in Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. Carrying a 3.96 GPA, he received his bachelor of science degree in physics two weeks ago. In December, he was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s most prestigious undergraduate honor society and the first Greek-letter fraternity, founded at William and Mary in 1776. In January, he was honored by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association as an All-Academic team member, in recognition of having placed seventh at the Southeast Region Cross Country Championships in November.

A stand-out on the track this season, Bechtol will compete tonight for the NCAA Championship at 10,000 meters. He ran the third-fastest time in school history at the distance, 28:55.57, in April to qualify for the national meet. His time also provisionally qualifies Bechtol to compete at the USAT&F National Championships in two weeks, and also surpassed the provisional qualifying mark for next summer’s Olympic Trials. In March, Bechtol earned All-East honors indoors by placing fifth in the 5,000m run at the IC4A Championships. Outdoors, he won the 5,000m title at the CAA Championships and took third in the 10,000m barely 40 minutes later. Bechtol also earned All-East honors outdoors, taking third in the 5,000m at the IC4A Championships.

The NCAA 10,000m race is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. Pacific, 11 p.m. Eastern.

CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District III
FIRST TEAM
Keith Bechtol WILLIAM & MARY Sr. Alexandria, Va. 3.96 Physics
Kevin Sullivan VA MILITARY Jr. Nokesville, Va. 3.99 Comp. Sci.
Dan McKenzie SOUTH CAROLINA Sr. Salisbury, Md. 3.93 Chem. Eng.
Javier Garcia-Tunon FSU Jr. Miami, Fla. 4.00 Management
Joe Samaniuk VIRGINIA TECH Sr. Rexford, N.Y. 3.92 Chem. Eng.
John Crews NC STATE Jr. Glasgow, Va. 4.00 Mech. Eng.
Tibor Vegh NC STATE Jr. Szekesiehervar, Hungary 4.00 Economics
Tom Lancashire FSU Sr. Bolton, England 3.93 Exercise Science
Eric Garren ELON Jr. Bristol, Conn. 3.96 Business Administration and Finance
Andrew Dumm VIRGINIA Sr. Fairfax, Va. 3.58 Foreign Affairs

SECOND TEAM
Brendon Helms APPALACHIAN STATE Sr. Matthews, N.C. 3.87 History and Secondary Education
Clendon Henderson LIBERTY Jr. Meadow, Texas 3.61 Kinesiology
Tamas Kovacs HIGH POINT So. Veszprem, Hungary 3.93 International Business
Ian Burrell GEORGIA Jr. Colorado Springs, Colo. 3.51 Criminal Justice
Adam Bingaman VIRGINIA TECH Sr. New Berlinville, Pa. 3.71 Elec. Eng.
Thomas Hilliard SOUTH CAROLINA Sr. Raleigh, N.C. 3.52 Accounting
Nazar Trilisky GEORGIA TECH Jr. Snellville, Ga. 3.92 Comp. Eng.
Phillip Warsaw WAKE FOREST So. Elizabethtown, Ky. 3.93 Mathematical Economics
Andrew Lemoncello FSU Sr. St. Andrew's, Scotland 3.28 Sport Management
Sam Morris DAVIDSON Jr. Seattle, Wash. 3.48 History
Enoch Nadler FLORIDA Jr. Keystone Heights, Fla. 3.37 Business Administration
Jussi Heikkila SOUTH CAROLINA Jr. Virrat, Finland 3.58 Finance
Lucas Wright RADFORD Sr. Roanoke, Va. 3.81 French and History