Brennan Earns First-team CoSIDA Academic All-District Honors

OMAHA, Neb. - Katie Brennan knows how to keep things in perspective.

Once a standout for the Leavenworth High School women's soccer team, Brennan has become the embodiment of the term "student-athlete" at Creighton University .

And people have taken notice.

Some very important people.

Brennan, who served as one of the Bluejays' three captains during the 2006 season, was recently named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District VII first team.

"I think anytime you get an award for your work, it's nice," Brennan said. "But, with or without any accolades, academics has always been the most important part of the college-athlete experience for me."

Brennan was a second-team CoSIDA selection as a junior, carrying a 3.87 cumulative grade-point average in graphic design - all while starting 13 of Creighton¹s 19 matches.

Yet there is more to life than just books and soccer balls for this Bluejays senior. Brennan was ranked 47th nationally in the ROTC program, allowing her to not only go into active duty, but attend helicopter aviation school.

The military has served a pivotal role in Brennan's life. Her father, Edward, was in the U.S. Army when Katie was born in West Point , N.Y. , on March 26, 1985. Edward worked and coached at the U.S. Military Academy until being transferred to Fort Leavenworth , where he eventually retired - and Katie made her mark for the Lady Pioneers.

Brennan was second-team All-KSHSAA and two-time team MVP while at Leavenworth, where she was a member of the National Honor Society and ranked third in her class of 358.

"I learned to enjoy and get the most out of the experiences I go through," she said. "Most importantly, I've learned that I could not have done it alone and I could not have accomplished anything without my teammates, friends and family."

Her teammates at Creighton learned early on that they could count on Brennan, who was named MVP of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament as a sophomore.

Brennan scored the game-winning goal against Indiana State in the 2004 semifinals as the Bluejays won their first of two MVC tournament championships during her career.

Second-seeded Creighton was upset by Evansville in the semifinals of the 2006 MVC tourney and finished with a 9-8-2 overall record.

"Being part of a team that worked as a collective unit to win two MVC championships was the best experience I have ever had in college athletics," Brennan said. "Our loss this year to Evansville in the semifinals of the MVC tournament was the biggest disappointment because it was the end of my soccer career and the end of something I dedicated myself to for so long."

Looking back, Brennan has no regrets about her hectic college schedule.

"I chose Creighton because it was an excellent school and I loved the people," she said. "Creighton allowed me to pursue Army ROTC, soccer and academics at the same time."

And as for her old prep program, Brennan had these words of advice for the current crop of Lady Pioneers: "I would tell them to keep working hard because no matter how good you are, there is always room to improve and, most importantly, have fun because if its not fun then it¹s not worth the work."