BRIEFLY IN SPORTS

Nagata, Barnes UCI’s top scholar-athletes

UC Irvine women’s swimmer Chelsea Nagata and men’s cross-country and track athlete Ricky Barnes have been named UC Irvine’s Big West Conference scholar-athletes of the year for 2006.

Nagata, a junior, is competing in the 100 butterfly, 100 backstroke and 50 freestyle at the NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships through Saturday at the University of Minnesota.

It is the third straight year that Nagata represented UCI at the NCAA Championships, where she became the first Anteaters female swimmer to earn All-American honors in 2006.

The biological sciences major was named Big West female swimmer of the year in 2006. Barnes, who is a senior, earned the All-Big West distinction after finishing sixth at the 2006 Big West Cross Country Championships.

He won the UCI Invitational in the fall and placed sixth at the Stanford Invitational, as well as 29th at the Pre-National meet. Barnes also earned All-Big West recognition in cross-country in 2004.

On the track, Barnes placed third in the 1,500 meters (3:47.15) at the 2005 Big West Track and Field Championships, earning all-league honors. Barnes also won the 1,500 at the All-UC Meet on March 3 (3:49.71).

Anteaters’ golfer Brian Edick is lauded

UC Irvine senior Brian Edick was been named Big West Conference co-athlete of the month in men’s golf for February.

Edick, was third in the Anteater Invitational, completed Feb. 27, leading UCI to its first tournament title since 1996.

Edick shot rounds of 72, 74, and 71 over 54 holes at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach.

Edick was fifth in the PING-Arizona Intercollegiate with a three-round total of seven-under-par 206, Jan. 29-30 at Arizona National Golf Club in Tucson. Edick shared the monthly honor with Long Beach State’s Michael Drake.