March 6, 2003

MOUNT VERNON, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Buena Vista University senior Chris Petersen (Audubon, Iowa/Audubon HS) and Simpson College senior Jesse Harris (Clive, Iowa/Valley HS) have been named to the Verizon Academic All-America® Men’s Basketball Team selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Harris was selected to the First Team for the second consecutive year. He is a history and political science double major, and is a finalist for the Jostens Trophy (Division III Player of the Year) for the second straight year. Petersen was selected to the Second Team. He is an accounting major and led the Beavers to their second straight Iowa Conference title this season. Both players were named First Team All-Conference on Tuesday.

To be eligible for the Verizon Academic All-America® Team, an individual must have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings, be a starter or key reserve, possess a 3.20 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) and must have been named to the Verizon Academic All-District First Team.

Harris and Petersen are the eighth and ninth IIAC student-athletes to earn Verizon Academic All-America® honors during the 2002-03 academic year. In the fall, Buena Vista’s David Laudner (football second team), Coe’s Kyle Fargen (men’s soccer third team) and Janice Frueh (women’s soccer second team), Cornell’s Matt Loptien (men’s soccer second team), Luther’s Bryan Korth (men’s soccer third team), Simpson’s Brian Mann (men’s soccer second team) and Wartburg’s Garrett Rettig (football second team) earned Verizon Academic All-America® honors in their respective sports.

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