FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, June 18, 2004

CONTACT: Ted Breidenthal 816/474-7264 tbreidenthal@d3independents.org www.d3independents.org

Association of Division III Independents
Names May Student-Athlete of the Month Award Winners

KANSAS CITY, MO.--- Erin Powell and Bret Blake, multi-talented track athletes from Nebraska Wesleyan University, were named today as the recipients of the May 2004 Association of Division III Independents Student-Athlete of the Month awards.

Powell, a sophomore from Beaver City, Neb. (Southern Valley High School), led the Nebraska Wesleyan women’s track team to a second-place finish at the Great Plains Athletic Conference (NAIA) track meet May 1. Powell earned All-Conference honors in four events and won the 100-meter dash and long jump. She also was a member of the winning 4x100 meter relay and earned All-Conference honors in the triple jump. For her contributions at the meet, Powell was named the GPAC Outstanding Women’s Athlete. In late May, she competed at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Decatur, Ill., where she earned All-America status with a fourth-place
finish in the long jump and helped the Prairie Wolves place 19th as a team. She also competed at Nationals in the 4x100 and triple jump. Powell owns a 3.98 grade-point average and majors in accounting.

Blake, a junior from Lincoln, Neb. (Northeast High School), earned All-Conference recognition in four different events (100, 200, 400 and 4x100 relay), as he led the Nebraska Wesleyan men’s track team to its 16th consecutive GPAC outdoor track title May 1. Blake was named the Outstanding Men’s Athlete of the meet after winning the 200 meters and anchoring the 4x100 relay to victory. He also finished runner-up in the 400 meters and placed sixth in the 100 meters.

At the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Blake won the
200 meters to earn his fourth national crown and become the first male athlete at
NWU to win four national titles in track. Although Blake struggled with tightness in one of his hamstrings before and during the meet, he also placed second in the 100 meters and scored 18 of the team’s 39 points en route to NCAA Central Region Outdoor Male Athlete-of-the-Year honors. NWU’s second-place showing marked the highest outdoor finish in school history for the men.

The Association of Division III Independents consists of 20 Division III independent institutions that have come together to face the unique challenges that confront independent institutions. The Association strives to enhance communication and professional development among administrators of Division III independent institutions; contributes to effective participation by independent institutions in the Division III governance structure; and seeks equitable opportunities for participation in NCAA championships for student-athletes at its member institutions.

All student-athletes from the Association’s 20 members were eligible for the award. Each school was allowed to nominate its top performing male and female student-athletes from May. The award recipients were selected after a vote of the Association’s Student-Athlete Recognition Committee.

More information about the Association of Division III Independents is available at http://www.d3independents.org.