May 29, 2007
Champaign, Ill. -
Illinois junior tennis player Momei Qu has been named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District 5 Women's At-Large first team while senior gymnastic standout Cara Pomeroy was named Second Team All-District. Qu advances to Academic All-America consideration.
District Five includes Division I universities in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba. In order to be considered, athletes must be in their second year academically at the school, have a minimum 3.20 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale and be a starter or regular contributor. CoSIDA members serving schools in each district vote on the winners. The at-large category consists of those from bowling, crew, fencing, field hockey, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming, tennis and water polo.
Qu is an electrical engineering major from Portland, Ore., with a 3.98 grade-point average. She ranked second on the Illini with 16 victories in singles, including a 9-4 record in tournaments, and won 12 matches in doubles. A two-time ITA Midwest Regional qualifier, Qu made it to the round of 16 in 2006 at the Regional tournament and qualified for the ITA All-American pre-qualification, falling in the Round of 64 in 2005. The Academic All-Big Ten performer is a repeat Academic All-District honoree.
Pomeroy is a kinesiology major from Ottawa, Ontario, with a 3.75 GPA. Pomeroy became the first Illini individual conference champion in eight years by winning the 2007 Big Ten Uneven Bars title with a 9.950. She also became the first Illinois gymnast to earn All-Big Ten honors all four years of her career and ranked seventh nationally in the uneven bars this season. Her stellar career included 41 event titles, a team-high 10 in 2007. Pomeroy is a finalist for the American Award, given to the top senior gymnast in the nation both in and out of the gym. Pomeroy helped Illinois place third at Big Tens, fourth at the NCAA Regional, and to a final national ranking of 20th in 2007. She scored the only perfect 10.0 in Illinois history to win the 2004 South Central Regional Uneven Bars title and qualified for the NCAA Championships. A three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection, Pomeroy won the team's Scholar-Athlete Award as a senior. Her career highs were 10.0 on bars, 9.900 on beam and 9.775 on floor.
