June 24, 2010

COLUMBIA, Mo. - Mizzou track and field senior Shannon Leinert (Eureka, Mo.) was honored as an ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-American selection as announced on Thursday (June 24) by CoSIDA. Leinert earned a spot on the third team after compiling a 4.00 grade-point-average while remaining one of the top 800m runners in the nation. Of the 45 student-athletes honored across the three Academic All-American teams, Leinert was one of 13 to boast a perfect GPA.

With the third-team nod, Leinert becomes the Tigers' first Academic All-American since Tyler Dailey took home second team honors back in 2007. She is the first member of the women's team to do so since Serena Ramsey landed on the first team back in 2006. Leinert was the Big 12 runner-up at 800 meters during the indoor season and clocked the nation's fourth-best time in the event heading into the NCAA Indoor Championships at 2:04.32. Leinert was also an All-Big 12 honoree in the 4x400m relay during the indoor season. Injuries hampered much of her outdoor season, but along with her accolades from the 2010 indoor season, Leinert also leaves Mizzou as a two-time Big 12 Champion at 800 meters.

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