Gardner-Webb's Bridges and Steinke Named to Big South All-Academic Teams
April 19, 2009 | Track & Field
Charlotte, N .C. – Gardner Webb senior Kelly Bridges and junior Paul Steinke were both named to the Big South Conference All-Academic teams for women's and men's outdoor track and field announced by the League office on Saturday, April 18.
Bridges (Lilburn, Ga.), who is a senior majoring in Athletic
Training, earned all conference honors in the women's pole vault
event at the 2009 New Balance Big South Outdoor Track and Field
Championships this past weekend, as she took first-place overall
with her height of 3.55 meters.
During her career at Gardner-Webb, Bridges earned all-conference
honors in the pole vault event in all four years in outdoor track
and field. Bridges also earned all-conference honors in the pole
vault in indoor track and field all four years as well. Bridges
took first-place in the women's pole vault at the 2009 Big South
Indoor Championships with a height of 3.35 meters in late February
and yet continues to set new standards in the pole vault at GWU
having already set and reset the school record four different times
during her time at GWU.
Steinke (Green Cove Springs, Fla.), a biology major at Gardner-Webb
University, has excelled both in the classroom and on the track
during his three-years as a Bulldog. At the 2009 New Balance Big
South Outdoor Track and Field Championships this weekend, Steinke
finished in second in the 400 meter hurdles with an NCAA qualifying
time of 52.23, also a new personal best. Steinke was an
all-conference performer in outdoor track and field in both 2007
and 2008 and in 2007 in indoor track and field. Steinke took
third-place in the 400-meter dash and sixth in the 200-meter dash
at the 2009 New Balance Big South Indoor Track and Field
Championships in late February. This season in outdoor track and
field, Steinke won the 400-meter hurdles at the Asics Winthrop
Invitational with a then personal best time of 52.89. He also took
second-place in the 400 m hurdles at the 49er classic and finished
third in the 400 meter hurdles at the 2009 Aggie Relays in
Greensboro, N.C.
At the 2009 Big South Championship meet, the women's team finished
fifth with 82.5 points, only 9.5 points behind the fourth-place
finishers Charleston Southern (92). Coastal Carolina won the
event, as the Lady Chanticleers finished with a team-high 228
points, 99.5 points ahead of the second-place finisher Liberty at
128.5 points. High Point took third-place with 97 points.
On the men's side, the Bulldogs finished seventh overall with 67.5
points. The Flames of Liberty took first-place with 216 points,
while VMI finished in second with 107 points. Coastal Carolina
finished in third-place with 101.5 points, while Radford took
fourth with 99 points. Rounding out the top-five was High Point
with 86 points.
2009 Big South Track and Field All-Academic Teams
Women's All-Academic Team
Kelly Bridges, Gardner-Webb
Zsannett Kis, High Point
Andrea Beckles, Liberty
Marcie Veitch, Coastal Carolina
Carly Moss, Winthrop
Zipporah McCann, VMI
Brittany Owens, Charleston Southern
Ashlyn Sinclair, Radford
Natalie Pearson, UNC Asheville
Men's All-Academic Team
Will Beasley, UNC Asheville
Jean Pierre Poisson, Charleston Southern
Josh Morgan, High Point
Phil Leineweber, Liberty
Paul Steinke, Gardner-Webb
Matt Dodson, Radford
Kevin Davis, Coastal Carolina
Trevor Beesley, Winthrop
