Nov. 5, 2010

Champaign, Ill. - Illinois middle blocker Johannah Bangert from volleyball and punter Anthony Santella from football have been named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District 5 Team. The award is selected by district members from the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Both Santella and Bangert now will advance 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 3.30 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale and be a starter or regular contributor.

Santella leads the Big Ten and is ranked seventh in the nation with an average of 46.0 yards per punt and in the process has helped Illinois lead the Big Ten and rank ninth in the nation in net punting (40.20 avg.). Through the first eight games, he has had 13 punts of at least 50 yards and 11 of his 40 punts were downed inside the opponent 20-yard line. Santella is a semifinalist for the Campbell Award and is a candidate for the Ray Guy Award. Santella is majoring in sport management and regularly participates in the Hometown Heroes program, including school and youth group visits.

Bangert is the all-time career blocks leader at Illinois for a team currently ranked sixth in the nation in first place in the Big Ten. The most recent Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, she became just the 10th player in the Big Ten history to surpass 600 blocks in her career (now with 605) and is just 48 block assists away from setting a new conference record in that department. Bangert ranks fifth in the conference in hitting percentage (.348) and second in blocks during conference matches (1.34). The native of Washington, Mo., was a preseason All-Big Ten selection and was named to all-tournament teams at the State Farm Illini Classic and Ameritas Players Challenge