Four Hokies named to Men's Academic All-ACC squad

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Four Virginia Tech track and field athletes earned 2009 Men’s All-ACC Outdoor Academic Team honors, Commissioner John D. Swofford announced on Wednesday, as 40 ACC track and field athletes were honored overall.

Senior Phillip Padilla represented the upperclassmen on the academic squad for Tech. The Shelton, Conn., native, an industrial design major, received all-academic honors for the first time in his career.

Three underclassmen rounded out the Hokie All-ACC academic members. Sophomore Matthias Treff won the ACC javelin title and finished third at the NCAA East Regional meet to qualify for the NCAA Championships. A shoulder injury held the Burgthann, Germany native out of the national meet.

Newcomers Will Mulherin and Hasheem Halim also received All-ACC academic honors. Mulherin won the ACC’s 5,000-meter crown in the outdoor season, while Halim placed seventh at the ACC Outdoor Championhips in the triple jump. Both qualified for the NCAA East Regional.

Florida State led the ACC with 10 total selections, while Duke received seven selections, followed by Tech and Wake Forest with four selections each. The Seminoles’ Javier Garcia-Tunon was named the conference’s Outdoor Track and Field Scholar Athlete of the Year.

To be considered for the All-ACC Academic team, a student-athlete must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 for both the most recent semester and for their career