ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia University volleyball team had four players named to the 2008 CoSIDA Academic All-District Teams, as voted on by district 5 sports information directors.  Mary Slinger (Faribault, Minn.) and Maria Steinhagen (Alexandria, Minn.) have been named to the First Team, while Whitney Meierotto (Washburn, Wis.) and Maggie McNamara (Zumbrota, Minn.) made the Second Team.  

As members of the Academic All-Region First Team, both Slinger and Steinhagen continue a bid to become AVCA Academic All-Americans as they help their team push for another run into the post-season.  The Golden Bears are 28-3 on the year and 17-0 in the NSIC.

Mary Slinger is a 4.00 junior majoring in biology with minors in Spanish and chemistry.  Slinger has been the team's leading defender all season and, as a libero, has collected 444 digs this season for an average of 4.62 per set.  Slinger holds the Concordia single season record for digs, set last season at 875.  She made the 2007 AVCA All-Region First Team and was a 2007 AVCA All-America Honorable Mention athlete.

Senior Maria Steinhagen has a 4.00 gpa as an art design major and business minor.  She has over 1,000 kills in her career at Concordia and is a three-time NSIC All-Academic student-athlete.  Steinhagen has 258 kills this season and is the leading blocker for the Golden Bears with 98 stops at the net (1.02/set).  She made the AVCA All-Region First Team and All-America Third Team in 2007.

Whitney Meierotto is a senior at Concordia with a 3.91 gpa in business management.  She is second on the team in both kills (333) and digs (318).  As a junior, Maggie McNamara has a 3.75 gpa in mathematics.  She currently leads the NCAA in assists (1,263), as she did the past two seasons.  She is also the third-leading defender on the team (237).