Local Student Athlete Nominated for 2009 McDonald's All American Girls Basketball Team

ALBANY, NY (02/02/2009)(readMedia)-- Mariah Stewart of Bishop Maginn High School has been recognized as one of the finest high school basketball players in the country through her nomination to the 2009 McDonald's All American High School Girls Basketball Team.

Stewart will be recognized by McDonald's on Tuesday, February 3rd at7:00 pm, at Bishop Maginn High School's, prior to the final home girls basketball game.

She is one of the 2500 high school basketball standouts in the nation nominated by the McDonald's All American Basketball Team Selection Committee and will be considered for one of the 4positions on the final girls team. The announcement of the final teams is scheduled to be made on February18th on ESPN.

This year, the McDonald's All American Games tip off on Wednesday, April 1, 2009 at the University of Miami Campus. The Girls Game begins at 5:30 pm EST and airs live on ESPNU.

Owner/Operators of McDonald's restaurants in the Capital Region Co-op, will be in attendance at the Maginn final home game to present Stewart with a certificate honoring her achievements. "The Capital Region McDonald's Owner/Operators are extremely proud of Mariah's dedication to the sport of basketball," according to Renee Reardon, president of the organization, said. "McDonald's continues to demonstrate leadership and commitment to young athletes and I am honored to have the opportunity to personally congratulate Mariah and her teammates for their hard work on the court."

Stewart, a four-year Varsity member of the Maginn team, has been captain of her junior and senior teams. She averaged 11.9 points per game as a freshman, 13.6 as a sophomore, 15.2 as a junior and currently 18 points per game as a senior. She is shooting 78% from the free throw line, averaging 4 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game. She is shooting 39.7% from the field. Stewart will continue her basketball career at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in the fall. She is coached by Julie Reilly at Maginn,

This year's McDonald's All-American Girls Basketball game will be played Wednesday, March 31 at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, and will be broadcast live on ESPN beginning at 9 p.m. (EST). McDonald's All American alumni include current and former

Proceeds from the game will benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) of South Florida. Throughout the 32-year history of the Games, millions of dollars have been raised for RMHC and its local chapters. The Ronald McDonald House program has provided a "home-away-from-home" for millions of family members of seriously ill children since its inception in 1974.

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McDonald's USA, LLC, is the leading foodservice provider in the United States serving a variety of wholesome foods made from quality ingredients to millions of customers every day. More than 80 percent of McDonald's 14,000 U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by local franchisees. For more information on McDonald's visit www.mcdonalds.com or log on at any of the 10,000 Wi-Fi enabled McDonald's U.S. restaurants.

The McDonald's Operators of the Capital Region Co-op consists of 21 owner/operators who own 73 restaurants in the following counties: Albany, Bennington (VT), Berkshire (MA), Columbia, Fulton, Greene, Montgomery, Rensselaer, Rutland (VT), Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Ulster, Warren and Washington.