Dinsmore and Edwards are Chosen First Team Capital One Academic All-District

By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE. -- Willamette University athletes Jaela Dinsmore (Sr., Hines, OR/Burns HS) and Theresa Edwards (Jr., Lake Tapps, WA/Bonney Lake HS) have been chosen First Team Capital One Academic All-District VIII on the 2011-12 NCAA Division III Women's Track & Field/Cross Country Team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Dinsmore has competed as a sprinter for the Bearcats over the past four seasons. Edwards has been a cross country runner and has competed in middle-distance and long-distance races in track and field.

As First Team Academic All-District selections, Dinsmore and Edwards are eligible for the Capital One NCAA Division III Academic All-America Team, which will be released on Tuesday, June 19. Dinsmore was named Third Team Capital One Academic All-America last season.

First Team Capital One Academic All-District

Jaela Dinsmore, who recently graduated from Willamette, earned a double major in Spanish and Latin American Studies. She achieved a 3.99 cumulative grade point average through the 2011 fall semester. She received the 2012 NCAA Elite 89 Award for women's outdoor track and field as the competitor with the highest cumulative grade point average at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Earlier this spring, the Willamette Athletics Department staff selected Dinsmore to receive the Jean Williams Award for 2011-12. The award is presented annually to a graduating senior female student-athlete who has developed and demonstrated strong leadership skills and outstanding athleticism, while maintaining a high rank of scholarship during her collegiate career.

She also was honored as the Women's Senior Scholar-Athlete at Willamette for having the highest cumulative grade point average among graduating seniors on the WU women's athletic teams.

Dinsmore qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships this spring in both the 100-meter dash and the 200-meter dash. She finished fifth in the nation in the 100-meter dash with a personal record time of 11.95 seconds in the finals, as she earned NCAA All-America status.

She placed 11th in the nation in the 200-meter dash with a personal record time of 24.62 seconds in the preliminary heats, just 0.04 away from reaching the finals.

During the 2012 Northwest Conference Championships, Dinsmore won titles in the 100-meter dash and the 200-meter dash. She also helped WU finish second in the 4 x 100-meter relay and the 4 x 400-meter relay. She won the NWC 400-meter title in 2011 and helped WU win the 4 x 400-meter relay in 2009 and 2010.

Dinsmore is ranked in the all-time Top 10 at Willamette in all three individual sprints. She holds second place in the 100 and the 200 and is sixth in the 400 (57.50 seconds).

Theresa Edwards, who is working toward a double major in Environmental Science and Biology, began the spring semester with a 3.97 cumulative GPA. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

This spring, Edwards qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships in the 1,500-meter run and achieved 18th place in the nation. She recorded her personal record time of 4:37.24 in the 1,500 on April 13 at the John Knight Twilight.

Edwards won two events at the NWC Championships, as she finished first in the 800-meter run and the 1,500-meter run. She registered a career-best time of 2:18.45 in the finals of the 800.

During the 2011 cross country season, she placed third at the NWC meet while setting a personal record for 6-kilometers in 22:01.61. She was named First Team All-NWC. She earned 15th place at the West Regional to claim All-West Region honors. She competed for Willamette at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, where she helped the Bearcats place 29th in the nation.

In the fall of 2010, she took 12th place in the NWC to earn Second Team All-NWC recognition and placed 13th at the West Regional to attain All-West Region status. She qualified as an individual for the 2010 NCAA Cross Country Championships.

CoSIDA District VIII

CoSIDA District VIII includes colleges and universities in the western United States. Athletes nominated for the Capital One Academic All-District Team were starters or key reserves with cumulative GPAs of 3.3 or higher (4.0 scale). Each athlete was at her current college or university for at least one academic year.