Southeast Missouri State University prides itself on turning out true "student-athletes."

Well, the school had a lot to be proud of Wednesday during the annual Southeast Scholar Athlete Luncheon at the Show Me Center.

A record 113 student-athletes were honored as Southeast Scholar Athletes, meaning they have a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.0. Also honored were eight Sundancers, nine student trainers and four cheerleaders.

The 113 recipients represent 47.5 percent of the student-athletes at Southeast. The previous high was 96 last season, which represented 40 percent of the student-athletes.

Ten athletes have a perfect 4.0 grade-point average and 52 have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher.

Those with perfect GPA's are track athletes Nathan Speer, Amy Arteme, Tobi Raney, Rebecca Shull and Laura Van Hoevelaak; gymnasts Cari Egbert and Cristie Logan; baseball player Archie Stambush; softball player Emmalyn Kisaka; and basketball player Ben Pranger.

Arteme is a local product, having attended Kelly High School.

The overall GPA for the 238 athletes at Southeast is 2.903.

Southeast student-athletes also continue to graduate at a higher rate than the student body as a whole. The latest NCAA statistics show that 47 percent of Southeast athletes graduate within a six-year period compared to 36 percent of the Southeast student body as a whole.

The Southeast graduation rate for all athletes exhausting eligibility stands at a school-record high of 79 percent.

Three Southeast teams have been honored by national coaches associations for team grade-point average, led by the women's cross country team that ranks first in the nation with a GPA of 3.71.

Southeast's volleyball team is ranked third nationally with a 3.54 GPA while the gymnastics squad ranks fourth with a 3.49 GPA.

Seven Southeast athletes also received Ohio Valley Conference Medals of Honor, which go to those who achieve the highest GPA for the 1997-98 school year in an OVC sponsored sport.

Southeast Medal of Honor recipients were Shull, Janelle Quigley and Celeste Ramsey (track); Mandy Edgington and Cathy Prichard (volleyball); Michelle Gruber (tennis); and Christine Engelhardt (softball). Ramsey is a Perryville High School graduate.

Three athletes were recognized for gaining GTE Academic All-America honors. Engelhardt and Jenny Oermann made the second team in softball while volleyball player Jackie Derwort was an all-district selection.

A complete listing of all the Southeast athletes honored Wednesday appears in `Scoreboard' on Page 2B.