ST. LOUIS - Illinois State senior Curt Jensen was named the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Week based on his performance at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, as announced by the league office Wednesday.
Now in its 15th year of existence, the Valley's Scholar-Athlete program honors its student-athletes for their athletic performance for a one-week period and academic success in the classroom.
This past weekend Jensen captured All-America honors, placing eighth in the men's shot put with a throw of 19.35m (63-06.00) at the Albuquerque Convention Center. Jensen continued to improve with each throw in the preliminary round of the Championships, opening up with a toss of 19.03m (62-05.25) and finishing the third round with a heave of 19.32m (63-04.75) to advance him to the final three rounds. However, the senior tossed his best mark of the day in the fourth round, throwing 19.35m (63-06.00), which earned him an eighth-place overall finish and the first All-American accolades of his career.
This season alone, the Colona, Ill., native earned seven top-three finishes, including five first-place finishes and four Missouri Valley Conference Athlete of the Week nods. Along with a spectacular 2013-14 indoor campaign, Jensen broke the ISU school record in the shot put with a throw of 20.29m (66-07.00) at the Eastern Illinois Early Bird Invite (Dec. 6).
The senior thrower holds a cumulative grade-point average (GPA) of 3.49 in construction management.
To qualify for Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Week laurels, student-athletes must carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.20, completed at least one academic year at a Valley institution and must be at least a sophomore in academic standing. Redshirt freshmen and first-year junior college transfers are not eligible. In addition to the academic qualifications, student-athletes will be evaluated on their athletic performance for a one-week period.
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