Arguello graduated from UE in 2016

 ST.LOUIS– Alexandra Arguello of Evansville (women’s soccer); Kayla Bell of Drake (women’s track); Keagan Potts of Loyola (men’s track); and Jonny Rigby of Southern Illinois (men’s tennis) have been named 2016 Missouri Valley Conference postgraduate scholarship winners as announced by Commissioner Doug Elgin. The Missouri Valley Conference Faculty Athletics Representatives Committee voted to award postgraduate scholarships to the four student-athletes, due to their exemplary academic and athletic performances. Each will receive a $5,000 postgraduate scholarship from the Conference.

Arguello, a native of Las Vegas, earned a spot on the 2015 MVC All-Tournament Team and was also named a Second Team All-Conference player in 2015. She played in 18 matches and tied for second on the squad with seven points while also tying for the team high with three goals. Arguello notched 32 shots (second on the team) and netted a penalty kick for the game winner in a 1-0 win over Missouri State. She earned the MVC Commissioner’s Academic Excellence Award in each of the last three years and is also a 4-time MVC Honor Roll member. Arguello completed her undergraduate degree at Evansville with a 3.94 GPA in Biology and was a President’s Council Academic Excellence Award winner this spring. She is pursuing a Doctor of Allopathic Medicine degree and plans to attend the University of Nevada.

“I am very happy for Allie to be able to be rewarded for all of the hard work she has put in to her academics and athletics,” head coach Krista McKendree said.  “She has exemplified what you would want a student-athlete to be and deserves all of the accolades she has received because of that.”

A native of Bolingbrook, Ill., Bell completed her undergraduate degree at Drake with a major in psychology and a minor in sociology while sporting a 3.92 cumulative grade point average. Bell has been admitted to Drake’s master’s degree program in counseling with a concentration in clinical mental health counseling. Bell is a two-time MVC Track & Field Scholar-Athlete Team member and was decorated at Drake as “Outstanding Junior in Psychology” in 2015 and “Outstanding Senior in Psychology” in 2016. She was named the MVC Elite 18 Award recipient during the MVC’s indoor championship. During her final MVC Championship, she earned All-MVC honors in both the triple jump and long jump. She finished her career as the Drake school record holder in both the indoor and outdoor triple jump and ranks in the top three all-time in the indoor and outdoor long jump.

Potts is pursuing a Master’s degree in Philosophy from Western Illinois University where he plans to enroll this fall. While at Loyola, he established a school record in the pole vault indoors in 2013 and outdoors in 2014. He also is part of Loyola’s school-record holding 4×100-meter relay team from 2015. He graduated from Loyola with honors in Philosophy and in English with a cumulative grade point average of 3.79. Potts, a native of Edina, Minn., has received Scholar-Athlete honors from both the Horizon League (2012-13) and MVC (2014-15).

Rigby concluded his career as a Saluki as one of the best men’s tennis players in recent program history. In 2016, Rigby earned All-MVC honors for the fourth consecutive year after posting a .722 win percentage with a 39-15 combined doubles and singles record. He finished his career with 78 singles wins and 66 doubles wins to total 144 combined wins, which ranks second all-time at SIU for a career. The Lancashire, England, native’s success carries over to the classroom. Rigby earned first team Scholar-Athlete honors for the third time in his career after posting a 3.48 GPA in management. He was named to the SIU Dean’s List four times throughout his four years. Rigby graduated in May, and is currently working toward his master’s in sports studies. The Intercollegiate Tennis Association recently recognized him as the 2016 ITA/Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award recipient in the Central Region.

To be eligible for consideration, recipients must have achieved a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.40, participated with distinction in a Missouri Valley Conference championship sport for at least two seasons at the nominating institution and must graduate from their institutions within 18 months following selection at the spring meetings of the Faculty Athletics Representative Committee.

Also, the recipients must be accepted for postgraduate studies at an institution of higher learning at the time of receipt of the scholarship. And, the recipients must have completed eligibility for participation in intercollegiate athletics in the academic year in which nom