From Emory University Athletics

Emory University seniors Kelly Costopoulos and Lauren Gorodetsky of the Women's Soccer Team were selected as recipients of the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, based on their academic, athletic, and community achievements during their careers at the University. 

The two will receive a one-time $7,500 scholarship, to be used for postgraduate study within three years.  Emory has now been awarded 84 postgraduate scholarships over the school's history, and its 67 since 2000 are more than any other NCAA institution except Stanford University.

Costopoulos and Gorodetsky become the sixth and seventh players in the history of the Emory Women's Soccer program to win the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, joining Hillary Burdette (1993), Andrea Pawliczek (2002), Caroline Hoit (2001), Annie Schenck (2003) and Amy Franciscovich (2007).

Costopoulos is coming off a season during which she earned selection to the All-University Athletic Association (UAA) First team, marking her third career all-conference honor, in addition to being named the UAA Rookie of the Year in 2010.  The midfielder was also selected to the All-South Atlantic Region Second Team this season, after earning a spot on the First Team in 2012. 

Costopoulos served as the Eagles' captain each of the last two seasons.  She played in and started 19 games during the 2013 campaign, finishing third on the squad with 13 points, coming on five goals and three assists, including a pair of game-winning goals.  Costopoulos finished her career with 25 goals (eighth in school history), 63 points (10^th in school history) and 11 game-winning goals (third in school history), while setting a program record by appearing in 85 games.

With a 3.95 GPA at Emory, Costopoulos was named to the Capital One/ CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team for the second-consecutive year this season.  She has been selected to the Academic All-District Team each of her three eligible seasons, and was placed on the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Scholar All-South Region Team in 2013 as well.  Costopoulos is a Biology major with minors in Global Health, Culture and Society.

Gorodetsky was named to the D3Soccer.com All-America First Team in 2013, and became the second defensive player in NCAA Division III history and the eighth Division III player overall to be named an All-American on four occasions by the NSCAA, earning a spot on the Third Team.  She became the first player in the history of women's soccer in the UAA to be named the conference's Most Valuable Player three times, and earned all-UAA First Team recognition for the fourth-straight season.  Last season, she was selected as the D3Soccer.com Defensive Player of the Year and as the NCAA Tournament Most Valuable Defensive Player.

Gorodetsky anchored an Emory defense that finished the season ranked 20^th in Division III with a 0.557 goals-against average and recorded 10 shutouts.  The center back started all 19 games she appeared in, adding on four goals and two assists for 10 points, including a team-best three game-winning goals.  She ended her Emory career with 11 goals and nine assists for 31 points, while starting the second-most games in school history (82) and appearing in the third most (83).

Gorodetsky claimed a number of academic honors as well, as a Psychology and Political Science major with a 3.89 GPA.  She was named to the Capital One/ CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team and the NSCAA Scholar All-America Third Team in 2013.  She earned Capital One Academic All-America honors in 2012 as well, as was named to the Academic All-District team each of her three eligible seasons.

Gorodetsky is also the 18^th woman and 38^th Emory athlete overall in the department's history to earn Athletic and Academic All-America honors, in addition to receiving an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.  Only two other women's soccer players – Pawliczek and Schenck – have accomplished the feat prior to Gorodetsky.

This season's NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship recipients (29 men and 29 women) represent fall-sports participants from all NCAA divisions (I, II & III), who will receive one-time, nonrenewable grants of $7,500.  Fall sports sponsored by the NCAA include men's and women's soccer, men's and women's cross country, football, men's water polo, equestrian, field hockey, women's rugby and women's volleyball.

The scholarships are awarded to student-athletes who excel academically and athletically and who are in their final year of intercollegiate athletics competition. The Association awards up to 174 postgraduate scholarships annually, 87 for men and 87 for women.

The NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship was created in 1964 to promote and encourage postgraduate education by rewarding the Association's most accomplished student-athletes through their participation in NCAA championship and/or emerging sports. For more information about the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships, go to the Diversity and Inclusion link under the 'About the NCAA' tab at www.ncaa.org.