University of Delaware Distance Runner Karen Mandrachia Awarded NCAA Women's Enhancement Scholarship
March 3, 2011
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Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- University of Delaware senior track and field distance runner and cross country standout Karen Mandrachia (at right), who will have earned 12 varsity letters by the time her collegiate career ends in May, has been selected to receive an NCAA Women’s Enhancement Postgraduate Scholarship for Careers in Athletics.
Mandrachia (pronounced “man-drake-e-uh”), an exercise science major with a minor in biology from Newark, Del. (Newark High School), was one of 13 student-athletes from throughout the country and all three NCAA divisions to earn the prestigious $6,000 scholarship. She plans to pursue a doctorate degree in physical therapy and will attend either Delaware, Boston University, or Duke.
“I have always been interested in physical therapy and I want to be the bridge between rehabilitation and performance for athletes,” said Mandrachia. “This scholarship will enable me to pursue my ambition by providing me with the means to make my ultimate goal a reality. I have gained so much from my athletic experience. I want to learn as much as I can so I can give back to the athletic community that has given me so much over the past four years.”
In addition to the Women’s Enhancement scholarships, the NCAA also announced the selection of 13 student-athletes to receive NCAA Ethnic Minority scholarships.
The goal of the enhancement program is to increase the pool of and opportunities for qualified minorities and female candidates in intercollegiate athletics through postgraduate scholarships. Recipients must be seeking admission or have been accepted into a sports administration or other program that will help the applicant obtain a career in intercollegiate athletics.
Mandrachia has excelled in three sports at Delaware, competing for the cross country, indoor track and field, and outdoor track and field teams and serving as a team captain for all three squads.
She earned three letters in cross country, competing in 21 career meets and posting nine top 10 finishes. As a four-year standout in indoor track and field as a middle to long distance specialist, she captured 10 career meet titles and earned All-East honors in 2010 when she helped lead the Blue Hens to a fourth place finish in the distance medley relay. During the outdoor season, she has won six career meet titles and placed 20th in the 4 x 800 meter relay in 2009.
Mandrachia holds school outdoor track and field records in the distance medley relay (12:16.23) and 4 x 1,500 meter relay (19:02.19) and owns the second best 1,500 meter time in school history with a mark of 4:34.27. Indoors, she owns school standards in the 1,000 meters (2:52.71) and 4 x 800 medley relay (9:15.89) and ranks No. 3 in the 800 meters (2:16.49) and No. 6 in the mile run (5:00.30).
She is a Dean’s List student, has been a nominee for Cossid Academic All-American honors, has earned numerous Colonial Athletic Association Academic Honor Roll citations, served as a peer mentor with the H.E.N.S. (Helping Each Newcomer Succeed) program in athletics, and earned her team’s UD Sportsmanship Award.
In addition to Mandrachia, also earning Women’s Enhancement awards were Vista Beasley (Georgia Tech), Caroline Bevillard (Georgia Southern), Jamie Holmes (Francis Marion), Marcia Kennedy (Nebraska-Wesleyan), Danielle Matthews (Texas Tech), Kayla McCulley (Pomona-Pitzer), Grace Murray (UCLA), Katalin Navarre (Denison), D’Anna Pior (Oregon State), Shayne Sangster (Western Michigan), Suzette Taylor (Georgia), and Nicole Westphal (South Carolina-Aiken).
Those receiving Ethnic Minority scholarships were Christopher Brown (Neumann), Camille Collier (Wake Forest), Maxine Goynes (Santa Clara), Shayla Jackson (Belmont Abbey), Darius Law (UNC Charlotte), Jewel May (South Carolina), Sierra Oates (Coastal Carolina), Ivana Rich (Virginia Commonwealth), Shanea Rufus (Florida State), Lawrence Trice (Arizona State), Rebecca White (Eastern Kentucky), Michael Woo (Lynn), and Brittany Young (Fancis Marion).
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