SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – Slippery Rock University track and field standouts Jen Hansen and Jen Harpp were each named to ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America honors Thursday in a release from the College Sports Information Directors of America.

Hansen was selected to first team honors, while Harpp was chosen for the third team.

In order to be eligible for nomination to the Academic All-America program, a student-athlete must carry a minimum grade point average of 3.30, be at least a sophomore in academic standing and have significant athletic credentials. The first team All-District selections in each district advance to the national ballot.

The Academic All-America teams for the college division consist of athletes from Division II, Division III, NAIA and major junior colleges, while Division I institutions have a separate division.

Both Hansen and Harpp are repeat selections to the prestigious Academic All-America team, with Hansen earning first team honors in 2007-08 and Harpp earning second team honors last season.

“We have always been proud of the way our student-athletes perform on the track,” said head coach John Papa. “But the academic honors that come along with those great performances are what really make this program stand out. I'm very proud and happy for these two ladies.”

Hansen graduated in May with her master's degree in special education, securing that accomplishment in just five years. She finished her academic career with a perfect 4.0 GPA for both her undergraduate (elementary education) and graduate degrees.

Hansen's athletic accomplishments were equally impressive. After suffering an injury last season that kept her from competing during both the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons, she returned this year and reclaimed her spot as the best pole vaulter in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.

She won her third PSAC title in the vault during the indoor season and followed that performance by earning her fifth career All-America honor with a third-place finish at the NCAA Division II National Championships. For her athletic performance, she was named the Atlantic Region Field Athlete of the Year, while her academic efforts landed her on the PSAC Winter Top 10.

During the outdoor season, she cleared 4.01 meters to post the second-best clearance in the nation as one of only two athletes to clear the 4.0 meter mark. She completed a career sweep of PSAC outdoor titles, winning her fourth outdoor vault title and her seventh overall individual title. Hansen followed the PSAC meet by earning her fourth outdoor and sixth career All-America honor, placing third at the NCAA Division II National Championships. Following the season, she was named to her fifth career PSAC Top 10 honor, and is a finalist for the PSAC's Pete Nevins Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, which she won following the 2007-08 academic year.

Harpp, who just finished her fourth year at Slippery Rock, is considered a graduate student as a member of the 3+3 doctor of physical therapy program at SRU. She posted an undergraduate GPA of 3.93 and followed that up with a 4.0 mark in her first full year of graduate work.

The Academic All-America honor takes into account all three seasons, with cross country coming into the fold in the fall. Harpp had one of the most successful cross country seasons in Slippery Rock history, and followed that with perhaps an even better performance during the outdoor track season.

Harpp opened the cross country season by dominating the IUP Invitational, setting a course record in the win. She followed that with a second-place showing in the SRU Invitational and a fourth-place finish at both the PSAC Championships and the NCAA Regional Championships, earning her All-Conference and All-Region honors.

Harpp closed the fall season by putting forth the best finish in Slippery Rock women's cross country history at the NCAA Division II National Championships. She placed 11th overall, earning her second career All-America honor.

A nagging hamstring injury kept her from competing for much of the indoor season, but she returned in the outdoor season to post some of the best performances in SRU distance running history.

She shattered her own school record in the 10,000-meter run en route to winning the prestigious Raleigh Relays and then took that mark down with a dominating win at the PSAC Championships, posting the third-fastest time in the nation at 34:16.89. She also placed second, to eventual National Champion Neely Spence, in the 5,000-meter run at the PSAC meet, posting an automatic qualifying time in that event as well.

Harpp closed her season by earning her third career All-America honor with a sixth-place finish in the 10,0000m at the NCAA National Championships. While she has no more outdoor eligibility, Harpp is scheduled to return next season to compete in cross country and indoor track and field.

Slippery Rock has had at least one student-athlete named to Academic All-America honors in each of the last 10 years and 16 of the last 17 years. A total of 59 Rock student-athletes have earned this prestigious honor since 1971. That total is sixth best among NCAA Division II institutions, according to data recently released by CoSIDA.