May 30, 2006

WACO, Texas - Men's tennis player Michal Kokta has earned ESPN The Magazine CoSIDA District academic honors the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) announced recently.

Kokta, a junior business and economics major, is among the 10 members named to the District VI All-Academic, At-Large first team which covers the states of Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico and includes 12 different sports.

The Prague, Czech Republic, native maintains a 3.92 cumulative grade point average and helped lead the 2006 Bears to a 25-7 record, a spot in the NCAA Championships team semifinals, a Big 12 Conference championship and a final national ranking of No. 4. In addition, Kokta led the Bears in singles wins with a 38-9 record and was 26-3 in doubles this season.

Kokta becomes the third men's tennis player to be honored by CoSIDA, joining former Bears Mark Williams and Benjamin Becker. Williams earned Academic All-American honors in 2000 and 2001 while Becker was an All-District second team selection in 2004.

To be eligible for Academic All-America status, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.20 on a 4.00 scale and have reached sophomore standing both academically and athletically. Academic All-District teams are chosen by vote of CoSIDA members.

As first-team district honoree, Kokta will be nominated for ESPN The Magazine's 2006 Academic all-America At-Large Team, which will be released later this summer.

For a complete list of ESPN The Magazine CoSIDA Academic All-Region selections please visit: http://www.cosida.com/allamerica/default.asp