March 7, 2008
Center Valley, Pa. - Navy junior Kelly Zahalka was voted the Patriot League Women's Swimming and Diving Scholar-Athlete of the Year, it was announced on Friday by Patriot League Executive Director Carolyn Schlie Femovich. Zahalka earns the award for the second-consecutive year and is the second Navy swimming and diving student-athlete in Patriot League history to win the prestigious award.
Zahalka, an honors history major and Chinese minor with a 4.00 cumulative grade-point average, is a two-time member of the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll. The junior from Richmond, Va. has posted a 4.00 GPA and has been honored on the Superintendent's List at Navy during each of her five semesters in Annapolis. Zahalka also ranks 1st in her class of 1,075 on both the Academic Order of Merit and the Military Order of Merit. Zahalka was also named as a member of the Third-Team Academic All-America by CoSIDA in 2007.
At the 2008 Patriot League Swimming and Diving Championships, Zahalka placed first in the 200yd Fly and 400yd IM races, and also finished second in the 200IM. She set a new Patriot League Championship Meet record in the 200yd Fly with a time of 2:03.02, and also became one of only two swimmers in League history to win the 400 IM event in three consecutive years. Zahalka was also a member of the first-place 200yd and 800yd Freestyle Relay teams.
To be eligible for the Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average and be a starter or key player in his/her sport. Freshmen are not eligible for this honor.
The Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year for each individual sport comprises the pool of nominees for the Patriot League Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards given out over the summer. One male and one female are selected for this honor.
