NEW ORLEANS, La. --- Seniors Dillon Farrell and Brielle Sutter, sophomore Lauren White and freshmen Kyle Allison, Melissa Cheong and Mary Kate Duncan from the Moravian College men's and women's track & field teams have been named United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic honorees for the 2014-15 season.
To qualify for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Track and Field Team, the student-athlete must have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 and have met either of the following athletic standards: a student-athlete must have competed in an NCAA Indoor or Outdoor Championship or finished the regular season ranked in the national top 35 in an individual event or ranked in the national top 25 (collective listing) in a relay event on the official NCAA POP list provided by TFRRS.org.
There were a total of 297 males and 420 females to earn USTFCCCA Track and Field All-Academic honors this past spring. The Moravian women's team also earned All-Academic Team honors, on of 170 women's teams to earn the honor, after posting a team GPA of 3.23.
"We're working with student-athletes and as the name implies our athletes have a dual role while on campus here," commented Head Coach Jesse Baumann. "I can't tell you how many times we've had to adjust practice times for individuals due to our athlete's academic responsibilities. They have a lot to balance as they're preparing for life after Moravian, not just in the class, but with labs, practicals, research projects, internships, and participating in clubs for their major. Being honored in this way is a testament to their work ethic in the classroom, the time they put into maximizing their athletic potential, and how well they can multi-task. It's certainly a source of pride for any athlete, coach, or program to have student-athletes who can perform at a National level while excelling in their major."
Farrell finished the outdoor season ranked 35th in the 10,000-meter run with a school-record time of 31:05.80 run at the Sam Howell Invitational hosted by Princeton University on April 2-3. Farrell was Moravian's Senior Male Athlete Award winner this year and graduated with a degree in nursing.
Sutter and White were part of the Greyhounds' 4x100-meter relay team that was 27th overall and the 22nd ranked women's team with a time of 47.95 seconds. Sutter also graduated in May with a degree in nursing and White is also working on a nursing major at Moravian.
Allison was 13th in the nation in the javelin throw heading into the NCAA Division III Championships with a mark of 60.72 meters (199-2) from the Landmark Conference Championship meet, and he was 17th at the NCAA meet. He is working on a degree in economics with a minor in physics.
Cheong, who was Landmark Conference Indoor Rookie of the Year, was tied for 26th in the high jump outdoors with a school-record mark of 1.65 meters (5-5) that she recorded at the ECAC Division III Outdoor Championships.
Duncan was tied for 14th in the women's javelin with a toss of 42.56 meters (139-7) that she threw on April 10 in the Coach P Open. Duncan would also finish 22nd in the event at the NCAA Championship meet.
The entire USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams are available at http://www.ustfccca.org/2015/07/division-iii/diii-mens-track-field-scholar-athletes-of-the-year-all-academic-individuals-announced-2015 – for men; http://www.ustfccca.org/2015/07/division-iii/diii-womens-track-field-scholar-athletes-of-the-year-all-academic-individuals-announced-3 – for women and http://www.ustfccca.org/2015/07/division-iii/diii-track-field-scholar-teams-of-the-year-all-academic-teams-announced-2015 – for team awards.