UC Names Topcat Scholar Athletes of the Year

May 15, 2006

Chad Beamer is the Male Topcat Scholar Athlete of the Year.

CINCINNATI, Ohio---University of Cincinnati senior track and field athletes Chad Beamer and Abi Hamrick have been named the Athletics Department's Male and Female Topcat Scholar Athletes of the Year. The awards are presented annually to the graduating student-athletes with the highest overall grade point average.

Beamer (Bellevue, Ohio/Bellevue) competed for the Bearcats in the pole vault, placing seventh at the 2006 BIG EAST Championships. He ranks eighth on the school performance list with a 16'4-3/4" vault. As a sophomore, Beamer qualified for the NCAA Regionals and finished second at the Conference USA Championships. In the classroom, Beamer will earn a degree in engineering and carries a 3.79 grade point average. In 2005, he was awarded a Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Medal for having a cumulative GPA over 3.75.

Hamrick (Perrysburg, Ohio/Perrysburg) has been a member of both the cross country and track and field team's during her time at UC. During the 2006 indoor season, Hamrick posted the team's top time in the one mile run. Academically, Hamrick is nearing a degree in dietetics and has a 4.0 grade point average. She has been a Topcat Scholar and has represented her teams as the scholar-athlete of the quarter six times. In addition, Hamrick has five times been named the Athletics Department's Female Scholar Athlete of the Quarter and is a member of the Legion of Excellence. She was also a C-USA Commissioner's Academic Medal recipient in 2004 and 2005.