HOFFMAN AND HANSEN GARNER ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT LAURELS

Hoffman Repeats As First-Team Selection; Hansen Named To Second Team

Senior Becky Hoffman (Gaines/Swartz Creek) and junior Raquel Hansen (West Olive/Holland), both members of the 2007-08 Ferris State University women's golf team, have been named to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District IV College Division Women's At-Large Team in an announcement made Thursday (May 22) by the ESPN The Magazine and the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Becky Hoffman

Hoffman, a social work major, earned first-team all-district honors for the second year in a row as the 2007-08 National Golf Coaches Association (NGCA) All-America Honorable Mention pick would eventually receive second-team recognition on the 2007 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Women's At-Large Team. Hansen, a marketing/professional golf management major, was a second-team pick.

As a result of her first-team selection, Hoffman will advance to the national ballot with the At-Large Academic All-America Teams being announced Thursday, June 12.

The 2007-08 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Women's Golf Athlete of the Year, Hoffman averaged a team-leading 77.81 strokes per round (2,490 total strokes) in 32 rounds this season. Her stroke average this season represented the third-best all-time single-season performance in FSU women's golf annals.

Hoffman, a four-time (2004-08) All-GLIAC First-Team honoree, racked up 10 top-20 place finishes this campaign with three being among the top five individuals. The three-time (2004-05, 2006-07, and 2007-08) NGCA All-America Honorable Mention selection led or tied for top team lowest stroke total honors in six tournaments this season. The two-time (2006-07 and 2007-08) FSU Most Valuable Player Award recipient earned individual medalist honors at the 2008 GLIAC Championships (April 20-21) in Arlington, Ohio, as she carded a first-place tying 226 three-round stroke total in regulation and then won a first-hole playoff.

Hoffman closed out her four-year (2004-08) Ferris State career ranking as the program's all-time leader with a 78.31 stroke average (9,240 total strokes) in 118 rounds. The three-time (2004-05, 2005-06, and 2006-07) NGCA Scholar-Athlete All-American accumulated 40 top-20 place finishes and produced 14 top-five place performances in her collegiate career. Hoffman was tabbed the 2004-05 GLIAC Women's Golf Freshman of the Year and owns the distinction of being only the second individual in Ferris State women's golf history to attain All-America honors at least three seasons.

Hansen registered an 80.31 stroke average (2,570 total strokes) this season in 32 rounds to finish with the team's fourth-best stroke average. She placed among the top 20 individual golfers in nine tournaments, which included four in the top five.

Raquel Hansen

A three-time (2005-08) second-team All-GLIAC performer, Hansen was the Bulldogs' top finisher in four tournaments this season. She was the individual medalist at the Olivet Invitational (Sept. 21-22) with a two-round 152-stroke total.

Hansen, a two-time (2005-06 and 2006-07) NGCA Scholar-Athlete All-America pick, turned in a three-round 233 score at the 2008 NCAA-II East Regional to tie for runner-up honors and finished the campaign with a 38th-place tying 325-stroke total at the 2008 NCAA-II Women's Golf Championships. As a result of her top-five place effort at regionals, Hansen was named to the 2007-08 NGCA All-East Region Team.

In her three-year (2005-08) career, Hansen is currently eighth on the program's all-time stroke leaders list with a 80.36 career average (6,268 total strokes) in 78 rounds. She has amassed 18 career top-20 place finishes with eight occuring in the top 10.

Nominees for the at-large team were taken from those student-athletes competing in the sports of bowling, crew, fencing, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming, tennis and water polo with each NCAA institution allowed to submit three total nominees for consideration.

In order to be considered, student-athletes must have a minimum 3.20 cumulative grade point average, have reached sophomore standing both academically and athletically, have completed at least one full academic year at their current institutions, and participated in at least 50 percent of their team’s competitions.

The team is selected by a vote of CoSIDA members within District IV, which encompasses the schools in Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee.