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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Pair of Rebels Earn All-American Honors
6/21/1999 | Track and Field
June 17, 1999
OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss senior Calvin Thigpen, a member of the Ole Miss track and field team, was named to the GTE/College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) National Academic All-America Spring At-Large first team. Senior Megan Breen, a member of the Lady Rebel golf squad, was selected to the GTE/CoSIDA National Academic All-America second team. Both academic teams were announced on Thursday.
This is the second consecutive year that Thigpen earned national first team honors, while national academic second team accolade was the first for Breen.
Thigpen, a native of Jackson, Miss., posted a 4.00 grade-point average in Chemistry and Math. In April, the senior was selected the 1999 GTE/CoSIDA National Academic All-America Men's Fall/Winter At-Large first team. Thigpen was also named to the national spring at-large first team in 1998, and in 1997, he was selected to the national third team. Awarded the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship last December, Thigpen is the school's 24th recipient of the honor, and will study at Oxford University in England for two years beginning in the fall.
This year, Thigpen completed his final year of eligibility as a member of the Rebel track and field team. During the 1999 outdoor campaign, he ran a season-best time of 15:37.86 in the 5000 meters and placed 21st in the event at the SEC Championships. Named to the Chancellor's Honor Roll every semester, Thigpen served as Ole Miss' Associated Student Body President in the 1997-98 academic year. He was selected to the SEC Academic Honor Roll the last four years.
A native of Longwood, Fla., Breen, who had a 3.84 in Banking and Finance, helped lead the Ole Miss women's golf team to its second straight appearance in the NCAA East Regional. She finished the season second on the team in stroke average (75.64), and became one of the first two golfers in Lady Rebel history to receive All-Southeastern Conference first team honors in 1999. Robyn Rinaldo was the other Lady Rebel golfer to be named to the All-SEC first team in 1999. Breen placed fifth at the SEC Championships, and led the Ole Miss squad to its best-ever finish at the conference tournament, placing third.
A three-time SEC Academic Honor Roll pick, Breen set the school record for most top-10 finishes in a season (10) and career (19) this year. Breen was selected to the Golf Coaches Association National Academic All-America team in 1997 and 1998, and was named to either the Chancellor's or Dean's Honor Roll every semester at Ole Miss.