Nov. 1, 2007

FULLERTON, CA - Cal State Fullerton junior defender Jenae Gibbens was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 8 First Team by the College Sports Information Directors of America on Friday morning.

Gibbens, a marketing major at Cal State Fullerton, was a second-team All-Big West Conference selection as a sophomore and also was named to the Big West All-Academic team in 2006.

On the field, Gibbens has been the centerpiece of a stingy Fullerton defense that has allowed only 18 goals this season (tied for fifth in the Big West) and a 1.01 goals against average (fifth in the league).

Offensively, Gibbens ranks tied for second on the team with four goals scored and is tied for third on the team with nine points. She was named the Big West Player of the Week on Sept. 17 after leading the Titans' defense to wins over nationally ranked California and Oklahoma at home.

Gibbens is one of two Big West Conference players on the First Team, joining Long Beach State defender Amanda Perry, and one of six players from the league selected overall.

By virtue of her first-team honor, Gibbens is now eligible to be named to ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Team which will be released on Nov. 20.

To be elgible for the Academic All-District Team, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at her current institution and be nominated by her sports information director.

Since the program's inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 14,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA covering all NCAA championship sports.

Cal State Fullerton returns to the field on Thursday night (Nov. 1) as the Titans host UC Irvine at 7 p.m. at Titan Stadium.