Braun and Rosel Named RMAC March Athletes of the Month

Sarah Meier
The Paw Print

The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference instituted an awards program to recognize outstanding performances by student-athletes throughout the league by honoring student-athletes each month. The league’s sports information directors nominate the student-athletes that are then selected by the league office. This month’s award winners for March 2010 are Adams State’s Aaron Braun (track & field) and Fort Lewis’ Allison Rosel (basketball).
Braun completed his illustrious career by winning his fourteenth,  fifteenth, and sixteenth All-American honors and his fifth and sixth individual national championships while leading the Grizzlies to their first-ever NCAA Division II National Track and Field Team Championship.  Scoring a team-high 20 ½ points during the NCAA Division II Championships that the Grizzlies hosted in Albuquerque, N.M., Braun anchored the Grizzlies’ victorious distance medley team to a Albuquerque Convention Center record time of 9:53.33 on Friday, Mar. 12.  Also qualifying for the finals in the mile earlier that day, Braun then came back on Saturday, Mar. 13 to edge teammate Ryan McNiff for victory in the mile as he led the Grizzlies to a 1-2-3-4-5 sweep in the event with his time of 4:07.44, which would convert to 4:01.90 at sea-level. Later in the day, Braun took second behind teammate Brian Medigovich in the 5,000 meters as the Grizzlies took six of the top seven spots in the event while clinching the team title.  Braun’s time of 14:31.37 and the eight ensuing second place-points he earned were the points that sealed the Grizzlies’ title.  Earlier in the month, Braun was named as the USTFCCCA’s Central Regional Athlete of the Year.
Rosel led Fort Lewis to numerous milestones in March, including their first ever appearance in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship game.  The senior from Colorado Springs averaged 16.9 points per game in March (nine games), as well as 8.6 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 1.7 assists and 0.3 blocks.  She shot a solid 50.9 percent from the floor (59-114) and 81.8 percent from the free throw line (36-44).  Rosel tallied three double-doubles in March while helping the Skyhawks to three championship appearances (RMAC tournament, NCAA Central Region tournament, NCAA Championship tournament).  She scored a month high 25 points on March 12 in the NCAA quarterfinal game against Colorado Mines, and she pulled down a month high 17 rebounds in the NCAA regional championship game against Concordia-St. Paul on March 15.  Rosel and the Skyhawks became the first ever RMAC team to reach the NCAA Elite 8 and to reach 35 wins (35-4).
Rosel’s honors in March included being named the NCAA Central Region Tournament Most Valuable Player, and to the NCAA Championship All-Tournament team, the WBCA Honorable Mention team and the DII Bulletin Fourth Team.