Cook and Couch Named Coleman Lew Leadership Award Winners

Charleston, S.C. – The Citadel's Josh Cook and Shanna Couch have been selected as recipients of the sixth annual Coleman Lew Leadership Award as announced by Coleman Lew & Associates, Inc., an international executive search firm, and the Southern Conference on Wednesday.

The award recognized 25 student-athletes from each of the SoCon's 12 member institutions. Coaches, faculty athletic representatives and senior woman administrators nominate prospective candidates based on leadership, academic excellence and athletic achievement in both the college environment and the community. Athletic directors and representatives from Coleman Lew & Associates conducted one-on-one interviews with the finalists before determining the award winners.

Cook, a rising senior on The Citadel's tennis team, currently holds a 3.94 cumulative grade point average as a civil engineering major. For his efforts in the classroom, the 2011 team captain for the Bulldogs, earned Spring Academic All-Conference honors in 2010 and is projected to do so this season as well. The Youngstown, Ohio native joined his teammates in their annual Bulldogs in the Community service project. This season the team visited the MUSC Children's Hospital and delivered gifts to the children from their wish list and participated in arts and crafts projects.

Couch, also a rising senior, completed the 2010-11 season with a 4.0 cumulative GPA as a health, exercise, and sport science major. The Kansas City, Kan., native aided the Bulldog soccer team in their most successful season since its inception in 2001. The team finished the season with a 12-8-1 overall record and 7-4 in the SoCon, where they finished third overall and made their first appearance in league postseason action. Couch, a midfielder, has also been selected to the 2010 NSCAA Scholar All-South Region honorable mention team, the 2010 CoSIDA/ESPN Academic All-District women's third team for District 3 and the 2010 SoCon Fall Academic All-Conference team.

Recipients will be recognized at the Southern Conference Honors Dinner on Wednesday, June 1 at the Charleston Marriott in Charleston, S.C.

For more information on Bulldog Soccer, visit the official website of The Citadel Athletics at www.CitadelSports.com.

The 2011 Coleman Lew & Associates Leadership Award recipients are: