ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Senior softball player Denise Jilka (Eureka, Mo./Eureka) has been named one of 10 Missouri Valley Conference Good Neighbor Award recipients, according to an announcement by the league office Wednesday.

After appearing in just 51 games in her first three seasons due to injury, Jilka started 46 of the 48 games she played in this spring while splitting time between first and third base.  She tied for second on the team in walks with 13 and tied for fourth on the squad with 16 runs scored in her final season on The Hilltop. 

Jilka hit her first home run since her freshman year against 19th-ranked Texas A&M during the opening weekend of the season and was tied for sixth with 12 RBI.  She was second on the team in putouts and her career-best 58 assists was third on the team. 

A psychology major, Jilka graduated last month with a 3.57 cumulative grade point average.  In addition to helping the team's fundraising efforts to help purchase a wheelchair for fan Julie Prill, she volunteered at the soup pantry and made the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll all eight semesters at BU.  Her volunteer work also included helping the Cards that Care campaign volunteer work at the Crittenton Center Crisis Nursery.  On campus, Jilka was secretary of the Braves Council, Bradley's student-athlete advisory committee. 

In an effort to honor model student-athletes, the Missouri Valley Conference has partnered with State Farm Insurance in creating the MVC Good Neighbor Award. In order to be eligible for the award, the student-athlete must be in good academic standing, must demonstrate good citizenship through good sportsmanship and significant community service and must participate in a sport during the season of recognition. The Valley will recognize 10 student-athletes three times annually (fall, winter, spring) for a total of 30 honorees each school year.