Valete Graham & Olivia Jarem Named America East Conference Scholar-Athletes of the Year

Cambridge, Mass. - University at Albany's Valete Graham and Olivia Jarem were chosen America East Conference Scholar-Athletes of the Year in the sports of men's outdoor track & field and women's lacrosse, respectively, as announced on Tuesday, July 13 by the conference office. Graham earned the academic award for the second consecutive year.

Graham, who graduated with a 3.70 cumulative grade point average as a psychology major, was voted to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America national third team. He was honored as UAlbany's 2009-10 Co-Male Athlete of the Year. Graham made the 2008 and 2009 USTFCCCA Division I Men's All-Academic Track and Field Team and was named the 2009 America East Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year in outdoor track and the 2010 America East Scholar-Athlete of the Year in indoor track. A member of five America East all-academic teams, Graham was a 2010 ECAC Merit Medal winner as the school's top senior male student-athlete and a recipient of the Chancellor's Scholar-Athlete Award.

Graham won his third straight long jump title at the America East outdoor championship by leaping 24-feet, 7.75-inches, becoming just the second athlete to accomplish the feat in league history. The indoor and outdoor team MVP also placed fifth in the triple jump with a mark of 47-8. Graham was eighth in the long jump (23-9.50) at the IC4A Championship. His mark of 24-9.25 in the long jump at the 2009 America East championship is a school record.

A senior from Bronx, N.Y., Graham also had a fine indoor campaign, accumulating 18 points at the America East championship. He garnered all-conference laurels twice by winning the long jump with a leap of 23-6 and placing second in the triple jump with a mark of 47-10. He led the Great Danes to their second consecutive title at the IC4A Championship by registering a fourth-place mark of 23-2.75 in the long jump. In addition, Graham broke the program standard in the long jump by leaping 24-6.50 at the Great Dane Classic.

Jarem recently graduated with a 4.00 cumulative grade point average in psychology and a minor in education. She was selected to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America At-Large national second team. In 2009-10, Jarem received a NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, one of 13 females honored nationwide, and plans to study sports psychology as a graduate student at Ithaca College. Jarem was the recipient of UAlbany's Presidential Scholar-Athlete Award as the school's top senior female student-athlete and the State University of New York Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence. She was chosen to both the District I Women's At-Large and America East Conference Women's Lacrosse all-academic squads.

A senior from Clifton Park, N.Y., Jarem totaled 31 goals and four assists for the nation's second-ranked scoring offense. The midfielder was 10th among the conference leaders in goals. She led the Great Danes to their first-ever top-20 national ranking, a school-record 13-3 campaign and the program's first America East Conference regular-season title. Jarem tallied two or more goals in 11 contests and posted a .534 shot percentage.


Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information