Feb. 19, 2008

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Four University of Maryland student-athletes were named recipients of postgraduate scholarships, the Atlantic Coast Conference announced Tuesday.

Beth Gillming (volleyball), Toni Aluko (track & field) and Gretchen Kittelberger (gymnastics) all received a Weaver-James-Corrigan Award, while Crystal Langhorne (women's basketball) received a Weaver-James-Corrigan Honorary Award.

The Weaver-James-Corrigan Award is given to student-athletes that have performed with distinction both athletically and academically, while demonstrating exemplary conduct in the community. The Weaver-James-Corrigan Honorary Award honors student-athletes who plan to continue to play at the Olympic or professional level.

As winners of the Weaver-James-Corrigan Award, Gillming, Oluwatoni and Kittelberger will receive $5,000 to use toward their postgraduate educations.

Maryland's four selections tied for the most in the ACC and they will be honored with the other 36 conference winners April 16 in Greensboro, N.C at a luncheon hosted by the Nat Greene Kiwanis Club at the Koury Convention Center.

Langhorne is one of the most decorated athletes in Maryland history. A Willingboro, N.J., native, Langhorne is the women's basketball program's all-time leader in both points and rebounds and the only basketball player, men's or women's, in school history to reach the 2,000-point and 1,000-rebound milestones. Langhorne is a two-time All-American and three-time All-ACC performer. Langhorne owns both the Maryland and ACC records for field goal percentage for a season and career.

A McDonald's All-American and two-time New Jersey Gatorade Player of the Year selection in high school, Langhorne made an impact on the Terps' program right away, winning ACC Rookie of the Year in 2005 and helping lead the Terps to the 2006 national championship as a sophomore. Langhorne is also a three-time ACC Honor Roll selection and two-time ACC All-Academic Team selection. Langhorne was an ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Third-Team Academic All-American in 2007.

Gillming, a Cincinnati native, is the volleyball program's all-time leader in games played with 488 and her 1,582 digs are second on Maryland's all-time list. Gillming set the ACC Tournament digs record as a freshman as Maryland went on to win the ACC title and advance to the NCAA Tournament. Gillming has made the ACC Honor Roll each of the last four seasons and has been a Maryland Scholar-Athlete seven times. Gillming was the recipient of the prestigious Col. Thomas M. Fields Award for the 2006-07 school year. Gillming made the ACC's All-Academic Volleyball Team for the third straight time this year.

Aluko, a senior track and field student-athlete from Burtonsville, Md., is the defending Atlantic Coast Conference champion in the women's outdoor high jump. Aluko is also on all-time top-10 lists at Maryland in five different track and field events, including her status as only one of three Terrapin women ever to surpass 40 feet outdoors in the triple jump. A two-time All-ACC selection, Aluko is also a member of Maryland's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and has coordinated a number of community service projects for the track and field program.

Kittelberger, a Webster, N.Y., native, overcame a season-ending knee injury in 2005 to become an all-around performer for the Terrapins' gymnastics program. Kittelberger came to Maryland as an established student, having been named the Valedictorian of her graduating class at Webster Schroeder High School in Webster, N.Y. Kittelberger has continued to thrive academically in College Park, earning NACGC All-American honors as a freshman, along with a place on the EAGL All-Academic Team. Kittelberger was again named to the EAGL All-Academic Team as a sophomore and junior. As a sophomore, Kittelberger received the ACC Community Service Award and Intercollegiate Athletics Community Service Award. Kittelberger was named the EAGL Scholar-Athlete of the Year last season.