Grand Lake, Colo. –  The 2012-2013 Baldwin Wallace University women's lacrosse team earned the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Academic Team Award.  BW and Otterbein University were the only Ohio Athletic Conference schools and two of 86 NCAA Division III Colleges/ Universities across the country to receive this honor.

The award honors collegiate women's lacrosse teams that displayed excellence in the classroom by maintaining at least a 3.00 cumulative team grade point average on a 4.00 scale.

The Yellow Jackets posted a 3.260 team grade point average last season.  In addition, two of the team's returning student-athletes earned Academic All-OAC honors. That honor is given to student-athletes who carry a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.50 overall.  They were juniors Ellen Fedick (Rochester, N.Y./Our Lady of Mercy) and Becky Russell (Glenshaw, Pa./Shaler Area).

Fedick, a pre-physical therapy major, earned a 3.992 grade point average, which was the highest among all junior student-athletes at the University in 2012-2013. She also was awarded the 2013 BW Women's Club President's Scholarship for her efforts in the classroom.

Russell, also a pre-physical therapy major, earned a 3.941 grade point average.

The Yellow Jacket women's lacrosse team had a 4-6 record in their inaugural season and was led by Head Coach Kim Russell.

"We are extremely pleased as a team," said Russell.  "The honor for our team is significant because we place a huge emphasis that we are student-athletes and that the word student comes before the word athlete.  We also stress academics every day to our student-athletes because that is a big part of the Division III philosophy.

"We also are pleased for Ellen and Becky," continued Russell. "Both young ladies did very well in the classroom and are key members of our first-ever women's lacrosse team at BW.  We are proud of their efforts and know that they are strong role models for our younger student-athletes to emulate."

The Yellow Jacket lacrosse team will be back in action next winter and spring.

FOR MORE BW SPORTS INFORMATION, please contact SID Kevin Ruple by telephone at 440-826-2327 and e-mail at kruple@bw.edu and Assistant SID Jeff Miller by telephone at 440-826-2780 and e-mail at jefmille@bw.edu. Fans can access the latest BW athletics information at www.bwyellowjackets.com and we invite you to join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/bwyellowjackets and Twitter at http://twitter.com/bwathletics.