Ericson, Galligan Top November Athletes

CHARLESTON, Ill. – Derek Ericson from men’s cross country and Rachel Galligan from women’s basketball have been named the Eastern Illinois student-athletes of the month for November 2008. Each month during the school year one male and one female student-athlete are recognized for their outstanding performance in their sport.

Ericson, a sophomore from Crystal Lake, Ill., was the Panthers top finisher at both the Ohio Valley Conference championships and the NCAA Midwest Regional. Ericson earned second team All-OVC honors with an 8th place finish at the conference meet. At the NCAA meet he placed 85th to lead the Panthers contingent. He posted a time of 33:24:20 on the 10K course.

Galligan, a senior from Bloomington, Ill., helped the Panthers start the season with a 4-3 record including a second place finish at the University of Cincinnati tournament. Galligan averaged 15.4 points and 7.1 rebounds for the month. She helped spark EIU to a pair of home wins over 2008 NCAA Tournament teams Miami of Ohio and SMU.