Four Nebraska Wesleyan University softball players have been honored as Capital One Academic All-District VII selections. Three NWU Players were named to the 2011 Capital One Academic All-District First team as senior outfielder Megan Beckstead, junior outfielder Dani Bryant and senior First baseman Marcia Kennedy were all on the first team. Senior pitcher Alysia Wittmaack was named Second-Team All-District honors.

With their selection to the Academic All-District first team, all three NWU players advance to the national ballot for Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-America.

Beckstead (Bellevue, Neb.) carries a 3.89 GPA as an elementary education major. She played in all 37 games this season and batted .400 with 29 RBI. She ends her career with 103 runs scored to rank second all-time at NWU.

Bryant (Lincoln, Neb.) has a 3.71 GPA as a Biochemistry/Molecular Biology and Spanish majors. She was a Second-Team Academic All-District selection in 2010. Bryant was leading the country in stolen bases with 32 before suffering a season-ending knee injury.

Kennedy (Omaha, Neb.) has a 3.66 GPA as an athletic training major. Kennedy was among the conference leaders in several offensive categories. She hit .431 with two HR and 30 RBI. She led the team with a .686 slugging percentage. Kennedy ended her career ranked first all-time at NWU in career RBI with 105.

Wittmaack (Lincoln, Neb.) has a 3.93 GPA in accounting and was a First-Team Academic All-District in 2010. She ended the year 7-3 with a 1.81 ERA after missing the first half of the season with injury. Wittmaack holds school records in nearly every pitching category at NWU including career victories (46) and strikeouts (516).

Student-athletes must meet four criteria to earn Capital One Academic All-District honors: 1) must have a cumulative GPA of 3.30 or better, 2) must have at least two terms of attendance at the institution, 3) must be at least a sophomore in athletic eligibility, 4) must be a starter or key reserve in their respective sport.

The All-District selection is determined by voting of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). District VII is comprised of NCAA Division II and Division III and NAIA institutions from the states of Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming and the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.