June 11, 2009
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Lauren Buck (Flint, Mich.), a three-year member of Notre Dame’s top varsity eight crew, has been named to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-American third team for the Women’s At-Large program. Buck follows former rower Leah Ash (a second team Academic All-American selection in 2001) as one of only two individuals from the women’s rowing team who have earned Academic All-America accolades.
Buck becomes the eighth Notre Dame student-athlete thus far in 2008-09 to be recognized as an Academic All-American and the 210th overall in school history.
The at-large program includes women’s bowling, women’s rowing, men’s and women’s fencing, women’s field hockey, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s gymnastics, men’s and women’s ice hockey, men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s rifle, men’s and women’s skiing, men’s and women’s swimming, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s volleyball, men’s and women’s water polo and men’s wrestling. Three teams are announced for both the men’s and women’s and honors approximately 45 student-athletes for each of the two programs.
Nominations for the at-large teams are limited to three student-athletes per school per gender. Thus, each institution may nominate a total of three men’s at-large candidates and three women’s at-large candidates. There is no limit to the number of candidates that may be nominated for a particular sport. Voting is done by the College Sports Information Directors of America with 10 players chosen to the first and second teams in each district with the 10 first team selections moving to the national ballot.
Buck rowed with the Irish program for four seasons and served as team captain in as a senior this past season. Before rowing with varsity eight crew at the start of her sophomore seasons, she began her Notre Dame career as a member of the novice eight boat. Buck was part Irish teams that won four BIG EAST team titles and two gold medals with the varsity eight crew.
An alternate on Notre Dame’s 2006 NCAA team as a freshman, she earned a spot with the varsity eight crew as a sophomore and helped that boat reach unprecedented heights when it earned a top-five finish in the final rankings, climbing to a program-best third during the year. The boat placed 12th at the 2007 NCAAs after advancing to the Petite Final.
In April, Buck earned the highest honor given to a student-athlete when she was awarded Notre Dame’s Byron V. Kanaley Award. Just last month, the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) also honored her for the third time in her career with the National.
Buck owns a 3.87 overall grade-point average and is enrolled in a joint degree program within the College of Science and MBA Program. She will graduate in May 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in biological science and an MBA. A Dean’s List honoree, she earned a perfect 4.00 grade index following the 2008 spring semester and was a member of Notre Dame’s prestigious Academic Honors Program.
Buck has been an undergraduate researcher since 2007 for the Indiana University-South Bend Medical School. She represented Notre Dame on the BIG EAST Conference Student Advisory Committee and was her team’s representative on Student Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC). An accomplished musician, Buck also earned a superior rating in the Flint Institute of Music Piano Competition.