Click here for
complete list of PSAC Top Ten fall winners
IUP cross country standout
Nicole Blaesser and wide receiver Anthony Cellitti have been honored by
Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference sports information directors as
recipients of the PSAC Top Ten award for the fall sports season.
The
award, which combines academic and athletic excellence, recognizes five men
and five women in the fall sports of cross country, field hockey, football,
soccer and volleyball.
To be eligible, a
student-athlete must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.25,
reached sophomore standing and possess outstanding athletic credentials.
The Top Ten winners from the
fall, winter and spring will then be eligible for the Pete Nevins
Scholar-Athlete of the Year, named on Wednesday in honor of the longtime
East Stroudsburg Hall of Fame SID who recently passed away after a short
battle with cancer.
Blaesser (Oxford/Oxford)
took over as the team’s No. 1 runner this season and showed why she is one
of the top cross country performers in school history.
She
won the NCAA East Region title in dominating fashion, besting the field by
52 seconds and setting a Slippery Rock course record to qualify for
nationals, where she finished seventh to earn All-America honors, a position
topped by only four IUP women in the program’s history.
Blaesser was a four-time
all-region runner and competed at nationals three times during her career.
During the 2006 season, she took four first place finishes, was second at
the PSAC meet and was the top Division II runner two events hosted by Penn
State. Blaesser was the United States Track and Field and Cross Country
Coaches Association East Region Runner of the Year.
A senior health and physical
education major, Blaesser has a 3.80 cumulative GPA and has been on the
Dean’s List all seven semesters, including three with a 4.0 average.
She is also a member of the
IUP track and field team and qualified for nationals in the 10,000 meters
last spring.
Cellitti
(Apollo/Kiski Area) has maintained a 4.0 GPA through his first five
semesters at IUP as a health and physical education major. He was named to
the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District II first team in 2006 and is a
two-time PSAC Scholar-Athlete.
During the 2006 season, the
junior led the Crimson Hawks with 27 receptions for 318 yards and caught two
touchdown passes.
His most memorable moment
came in the season finale against California when his 28-yard touchdown
catch with 50 seconds left capped a 97-yard drive to give IUP a 21-17
victory over the Vulcans and a share of the PSAC West title.
