Taylor Named to Academic All-America First Team

PROVO, Utah (June 15) - After earning a surprise NCAA title for BYU at the outdoor track and field championships, Susan Taylor was named to the GTE Academic All-America first team. Taylor, a senior from Salt Lake City, starred for the track team while maintaining a 3.95 GPA in English.

Taylor won the 1,500-meter title with the fourth-fastest time in the U.S. this year, breaking a 13-year old school record. Her 4:13.03 finish shattered the previous BYU best (4:15.00), set by Julie Jenkins in 1987. The mark also put Taylor in position to challenge for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team. She will be the only Cougar competing in the Prefontaine Classic, June 24 in Eugene, Ore. The meet, which will be nationally televised, brings together the best athletes in the nation, as well as Olympic-caliber talent from all over the world.

"Susan is phenomenal," said women's distance coach Patrick Shane. "She's already surpassed everybody's expectations, and I believe the best is yet to come. I would have to say that she has the best shot of any of our athletes at actually making the Olympic team."

Fifteen athletes were named to each of the three teams in an announcement by the selection committee, released Thursday. The only other Mountain West Conference representative was San Diego State's Meredith Johnson, who competed for the Aztecs in crew, a non-MWC sport. Taylor joins John Hedengren, a member of the men's track team, on the Academic All-America roster. Hedengren was named to the men's second team on Tuesday.