Nov. 2, 2010
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Three Notre Dame women’s soccer players — senior defender/co-captain Lauren Fowlkes (Lee’s Summit, Mo./St. Teresa’s Academy), senior forward/midfielder Erica Iantorno (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale) and junior midfielder Molly Campbell (Mission Hills, Kan./St. Teresa’s Academy) — have been named ESPN Academic All-District V selections, it was announced Tuesday afternoon by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Fowlkes was chosen as a first-team academic all-district honoree for the second consecutive year, and she now will advance to the national ballot for Academic All-America consideration. Both Iantorno and Campbell were second-team academic all-district selections, with Campbell earning her second citation in as many years (she was a first-team choice in 2009) and Iantorno making the squad for the first time.
The trio was chosen for district honors through voting by CoSIDA members in their district, which encompasses Indiana, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario. To be nominated, a student-athlete must be a starter or important reserve with at least a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) at his/her current institution. In addition, nominated student-athletes must have participated in at least 50 percent of the team’s matches at their respective positions.
A preseason selection to the Hermann Trophy watch list and the preseason BIG EAST Conference Co-Defensive Player of the Year, Fowlkes has started all 19 matches for Notre Dame this season as a center back, helping the Fighting Irish to a 15-2-2 record and their sixth consecutive BIG EAST National Division title (and 13th regular season conference crown in 16 years as a league member). She scored the game-winning goal in a 3-1 victory at Providence on Oct. 17, a win that clinched the division championship. She also dished out a pair of assists in Notre Dame’s 4-0 victory over Cincinnati on Sept. 24 at Alumni Stadium, making her one of two Fighting Irish players with multiple assists in a single match this season. Fowlkes twice has been named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll this year, and recently was chosen as one of 10 finalists for the 2010 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award, with fan voting currently underway at www.seniorclassaward.com.
A second-team Academic All-America selection and third-team National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-America choice last season, Fowlkes is bidding to become just the 13th Notre Dame student-athlete (and third Fighting Irish women’s soccer player) to combine academic and athletic All-America honors in the same year on two different occasions. She currently is enrolled in Notre Dame’s College of Science, where she has compiled a 3.657 cumulative GPA as a science-business major, was named to the dean’s list in the fall of 2007 (3.804 semester GPA) and is a three-time BIG EAST All-Academic Team selection.
Iantorno has been one of Notre Dame’s top reserves this season, appearing in all 19 matches and ranking fourth on the team with three goals, three assists and nine points. She drew the Fighting Irish even in their Sept. 10 overtime loss (2-1) at 13th-ranked UCLA with a picture-perfect goal in the final minute of the first half, and then scored the eventual game-winning goal in a 3-2 nationally-televised Senior Day win over Rutgers on Oct. 10 at Alumni Stadium.
A 2009 NSCAA second-team Scholar All-Region choice and a three-time selection to the BIG EAST All-Academic Team, Iantorno presently is enrolled in Notre Dame’s College of Arts and Letters, where she has registered a 3.677 cumulative GPA as an English major. What’s more, she was named to the dean’s list in the spring of 2009 after amassing a 3.867 semester GPA.
Campbell has been a mainstay in the Fighting Irish lineup for much of the past two seasons, starting 16 of 19 matches this season and ranking fifth on the team with 26 total shots (six on goal). After playing primarily at left back last year, Campbell moved into the midfield this season, helping add veteran leadership to a midfield unit that also featured two freshmen.
Campbell is presently studying in the College of Arts and Letters, where she has recorded a 3.642 cumulative GPA as a political science major.
Notre Dame ranks second all-time with 216 Academic All-Americans since the program’s inception in 1952. What’s more, 90 Fighting Irish student-athletes have earned the Academic All-America distinction during the past 11 years, tops among any school in the country. The Notre Dame women’s soccer program has produced 23 Academic All-Americans in its history (a national-best 15 since women’s soccer was separated from the at-large Academic All-America program in 2002), including Fowlkes’ second-team accolades last year.
A full rundown on the history of Notre Dame’s Academic All-America success can be found in the Academic All-America almanac at UND.com.
Notre Dame is awaiting the announcement of the 64-team 2010 NCAA Championship field at approximately 4:30 p.m. (ET) on Nov. 8 live on ESPNU. The first four rounds of the tournament are played at campus sites, beginning with first and second round matches on Nov. 12 & 14, and continuing with third-round contests (Nov. 19-21) and quarterfinal matches (Nov. 27-29). This year’s NCAA Women’s College Cup to be played Dec. 3 & 5 at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C.
For more information on the Notre Dame women’s soccer program, join the Fighting Irish women’s soccer news Twitter page (www.twitter.com/NDsoccernews) or sign up for the Irish ALERT text-messaging system through the sidebar on the women’s soccer page at UND.com.
— ND —