Montana State basketball standout Sarah Strand was named to the 2010 CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Women’s Basketball District VII All-Academic First-Team, Thursday afternoon.
By virtue of being named to the first-team, Strand’s name will appear on the national ballot for Academic All-America honors.
Strand, a 6-1 forward from Shoreline, Wash., is currently averaging 13.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. In addition, she is tied for the all-time Montana State single-season blocks record. Strand has also posted 19 double-figure scoring games this winter.
Off the court, the junior has a 3.93 grade-point average in nursing and is a three-time All-Big Sky Conference Academic honoree.
“Sarah has really set the bar for the type of student-athlete we want in our program,” said MSU head coach Tricia Binford. “She is a tremendous player, a fantastic student and an outstanding person.”
Strand was one of five players named to the first-team. District VII encompasses NCAA Division I schools from Montana, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Alberta and Saskatchewan.
“When you look at the size of district VII, this honor is quite an accomplishment,” Binford said. “She was competing against student-athletes from conferences such as the Atlantic 10, Big Sky, Big 12, Big 10, Mountain West, Missouri Valley and the Summit League. To make the top five is something we’re very proud of.”
Also named to the District VII All-Academic team were Kari Kincaid, Kansas State, Kellie Nelson, Creighton, Sam Schuett, Creighton and Ashley Sweat, Kansas State.
Strand was the only Big Sky Conference player named to a district first-team squad. Kyla Evans of Eastern Washington garnered District VII second-team accolades.
The national Academic All-America team will be announced Feb. 23.