Cirone Named Prairie Farms/MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week for 4th Time

[March 20, 2008]  NORMAL -- Junior Kristi Cirone, a guard on the Illinois State women's basketball team, was named the Prairie Farms/Missouri Valley Conference Female Scholar-Athlete of the Week on Wednesday. The honor recognizes a male and female Valley student-athlete every week for academic and athletic success. Cirone has received the award four times this season, more than anyone else in the conference, and five times in her career.

Cirone was named the most valuable player of the 2008 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament after guiding the top-seeded Redbirds to the title. She averaged 18.7 points per game over the three-day event and scored a season-high 27 points against Southern Illinois in the quarterfinals, including 20 during a second-half comeback. She tallied 20 points in the championship game against Drake and became Illinois State's all-time leader in free throws made.

The Chicago native carries a 3.45 grade-point average in exercise science and was selected for the CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine All-Academic District V Second Team and MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team earlier this season. Cirone is the third Redbird to receive scholar-athlete of the week recognition, along with women's basketball forward Ashleen Bracey, who received the award on Dec. 19, and women's soccer forward Bethany Russ, who earned the award on Sept. 19.

The Prairie Farms/Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Week award is in its ninth year and seeks to acknowledge student-athletes in the Valley for their athletic and academic achievements. To qualify for the award, student-athletes must carry a grade-point average of at least 3.00, have completed at least one academic year at a Valley institution and be at least a sophomore in academic standing. In addition to their academic qualifications, student-athletes are evaluated on their athletic performances for a one-week period.

[Text from file received from Jimmy Knodel, assistant media relations director, Illinois State University]