Air Force Academy

Former Air Force tennis player Shannon Buck earned one of 58 NCAA postgraduate scholarships for student-athletes who participated in spring sports. Buck, who graduated with a 3.42 grade-point average and a degree in biology, will attend the Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine in Kirksville, Mo., beginning this fall.
Buck completed his career as the best player in the history of the men's tennis program at Air Force. The 2006 Mountain West Conference Player of the Year and four-time all-MWC selection, Buck ended his senior campaign with a 29-5 overall singles record and an 18-1 mark in dual matches, all at the No. 1 spot. In addition to advancing to the finals of the Mountain Region Championships last fall, Buck was also the first Air Force player to compete at the ITA National Indoor Championships and play in two NCAA Singles Championships. He graduated as the school's all-time leader in singles winning percentage in dual matches at 92.2 percent with an 83-7 record.
A member of the dean's list every semester and academic all-MWC selection all four years, Buck was also a member of the Academy's Tri-Beta Biological Society (top 5% of biology majors) and was named to the 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Men's At-Large Team last month.
The NCAA has awarded 58 postgraduate scholarships of $7,500 each to 29 male student-athletes and 29 female student-athletes who participated in spring sports. In addition to the spring sport honorees, the NCAA also awards 116 postgraduate scholarships to student-athletes participating in fall and winter sports in which the NCAA conducts championships or participates in as an emerging sport, for a total of 174 postgraduate scholarships annually.
To qualify for an NCAA postgraduate scholarship, a student-athlete must have an overall grade-point average of 3.200 (on a 4.000 scale) or its equivalent, and must have performed with distinction as a member of the varsity team in the sport in which the student-athlete was nominated. The student-athlete must have behaved, both on and off the field, in a manner that has brought credit to the student-athlete, the institution and intercollegiate athletics. The student-athlete also must intend to continue academic work beyond the baccalaureate degree as a full-time or part-time graduate student.