Friday, April 7, 2006

BOWEN, PALENKAS NAMED TO ALL-SAC WOMEN'S GOLF TEAM

Amanda Bowen All-SAC 1st Team	Shannon Palenkas All-SAC 2nd Team

ROCK HILL, S.C. --- Tusculum College juniors Amanda Bowen and Shannon Palenkas have been named to the 2006 All-South Atlantic Conference Women's Golf Team announced league officials Friday afternoon. Bowen was named to the All-SAC First Team, while Palenkas earned Second Team honors.

Bowen, a native of Millington, Tenn., leads the team in scoring, averaging 81.94 strokes per round, while posting five top 25 finishes, including a pair of top five showings. This marks the third straight year Bowen has earned All-SAC accolades, but first on the First Team. In 2004, Bowen was the SAC Freshman of the Year.

Palenkas, a Maryville, Tenn. native, earns All-SAC honors for a second straight season. She is second on the team in scoring at 82.71, including four top 15 finishes. Her best showing came at the Lady Bulldog Invitational, where she tied for seventh.

Catawba's Paige Haverty was named the SAC Player of the Year for a record fourth straight time. Haverty becomes only the second student-athlete in the league to be named SAC Player of the Year for her sport, matching feat of former Tusculum women's tennis player Lesley Murray (2000-04).

Tusculum returns to action next week at the 2006 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Women's Golf Championship in Hickory, N.C. The Pioneers won SAC Championship twice in 2000 and again in 2001.

- SAC -

2006 All-South Atlantic Conference Women's Golf Team

First Team

Paige Haverty, Catawba

Eva Cormann, Newberry

Ashley Ratliff, Newberry

Amanda Bowen, Tusculum

Beth Kirkham, Wingate

Second Team

Jaynelle Harmon, Catawba

Stephanie Delgado, Lenoir-Rhyne

Stephanie Hemann, Newberry

Shannon Palenkas, Tusculum

Shannon Smith, Wingate

SAC Coach of the Year: Sam Gealy, Catawba

SAC Player of the Year: Paige Haverty, Catawba

SAC Freshman of the Year: Kacie Braxton, Wingate

SAC Women's Golf SAC Scholar Athlete: Martina Moo Young, Wingate