IRVING, Texas - With the first day of the Conference USA Swimming & Diving Championships looming, junior swimmer Meaghan Rousset made the first headline of the week as one of six student-athletes selected to the 2018 C-USA InTouch Credit Union All-Academic Team, announced by the conference office Tuesday.

"This award is really specialt o me, because I work very hard for my grades and it's great to represent the success that our swimmers have outside the pool," Rousset said. "It's always been my goal to act as a leader for our team and academics is a great way for me to do it."

Rousset, a two-time C-USA Academic Medalist and a four-time C-USA Academic Honor Roll member, boasts a 4.00 GPA with a major in biology.

"As a student-athlete, it can be challenging to keep up in the classroom," Rousset said, "but my success in academics is just as important to me as my success in athletics."

A key breaststroke and individual medley participant for North Texas, Rousset posted three season-best times at the Kansas Classic in the 100 breast (1:06.47), 200 breast (2:25.78) and 200 IM (2:12.42). She also swam a personal-best time in the 100 free against SMU (55.49) to take eighth.

Since joining C-USA in 2013-14, North Texas swimming & diving has had at least one student-athlete on the all-academic team each year. Samantha Scheck, Krista Rossum and Mona Groteguth each received the honor twice in that span.

"It really just shows how the program is focused on success in and out of the classroom," Rousset said. "The coaches always encourage us to be good students, and the athletic department does a great job supporting the athletes and making sure they will have a great future after athletics."

To be eligible for the all-academic team, student-athletes must have achieved a 3.2 cumulative grade point average and serve as a key competitor of their respective teams.

2018 IN-TOUCH CREDIT UNION CONFERENCE USA SWIMMING & DIVING ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM

*Letizia Bertelli, FIU
*Alicia Caldwell, Rice
*Anna Lynch, Marshall
Rebecca Quesnel, FIU
Meaghan Rousset, North Texas
*Marie-Claire Schillinger, Rice

* - repeat selection from 2017