MSUB women's basketball placed 7 on all-GNAC academic team

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Birgitta Gray O: (406) 896-5917 E: birgitta.gray@msubillings.edu February 23, 2016 7 named to GNAC all-academic team MSUB Women’s Basketball on Facebook | MSUB Women’s Basketball on ISSUU GNAC all-academic release | MSUB Award Winners

Sophomore Kasie Christensen was one of seven MSUB women’s basketball players named to the academic all-conference team.

The MSU Billings women’s basketball team is one of two Great Northwest Athletic Conference schools earning seven spots on the academic all-conference team.

PORTLAND, Ore. – The MSU Billings women’s basketball team was one of two schools in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference placing seven student-athletes on the academic all-conference team announced Tuesday.

Sophomore Kasie Christensen headed up the selections for MSUB with a cumulative 3.89 grade point average. Junior Alisha Breen (3.71 GPA) was honored for the second straight season. Forward, and graduate student, Janiel Olson (3.72 GPA) was one of 18 student-athletes named to the team for a third year.

Monica Grimsrud also earned a nod as a graduate student with a 3.70 grade point average.

Sophomores Lexi Prevost (3.27 GPA), Vanessa Stavish (3.50 GPA), and Marissa Van Atta (3.39 GPA) join Christensen as first-time honorees.

“I am very proud of all of our players for their outstanding academic work,” MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin said. “It is a great honor for them to be named academic all-conference. Each of them should be very proud of their individual excellence in the classroom.”

A total of 47 selections were made to the GNAC Women's Basketball All-Academic Team.

To qualify for the GNAC All-Academic team, a student-athlete must be in their second year of eligibility with a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 or better. Freshmen and first-year transfer students are not eligible.

MSU Billings (18-8, 14-4 GNAC) plays its last two regular season games on the road this week. Thursday, Feb. 25, MSUB will play at Northwest Nazarene, followed by a game on Saturday, Feb. 27, at Central Washington.

The Yellowjackets are currently in third place in the conference standings and have secured a berth in the GNAC tournament which takes place Mar. 3-5 in Lacey, Wash.

Name Alisha Breen* Kasie Christensen Monica Grimsrud Janiel Olson** Lexi Prevost Vanessa Stavish Marissa Van Atta

Major Health & Human Performance Health & Human Performance Elementary Education Health Care Administration Health & Human Performance Math & Education Business Management & Marketing

Year Jr. So. Gr. Gr. So. So. So.

GPA 3.71 3.89 3.70 3.72 3.27 3.50 3.39

Hometown Choteau, Mont.

Billings, Mont.

Montana City, Mont.

Billings, Mont.

Sidney, Mont.

Frenchtown, Mont.

Billings, Mont.

--@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--