Seven Skyhawks collect individual All-Academic accolades
2017 NCAA DII Cross Country All-Academic Awards
2017 NCAA DII Cross Country Individual All-Academic Awards
Knox |
Hersom |
Cyr |
Lastra |
Freeman |
Curtin |
Anderle |
|
EASTON, Mass. (February 13, 2018) – The Stonehill College women's cross country team has earned All-Academic honors for the 2017 season from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), while seven Skyhawks collected individual All-Academic accolades, as announced by the association on Friday.
Seniors Emily Knox (Worcester, Massachusetts/Notre Dame Academy) and Abby Hersom (Rockland, Maine/Oceanside), junior Makenzie Cyr (Douglas, Massachusetts/Douglas), sophomores Anna Lastra (Bridgton, Maine/Fryeburg Academy) and Alyssa Freeman (Billerica, Massachusetts/Billerica), and freshmen Sam Curtin (Plymouth, Massachusetts/Plymouth North) and Sophia Anderle (Peabody, Massachusetts/Peabody Veterans Memorial) were recognized for posting a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 or higher while also finishing among the top-30 percent of total eligible runners at the regional championship or in the top half of the field at the NCAA Championships.
Stonehill was among 157 women's NCAA Division II teams to earn All-Academic honors from the USTFCCCA. To qualify for this award, programs must have compiled a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher and scored at their NCAA regional meet. The Skyhawks captured their ninth-consecutive Northeast-10 Conference Championship in late October, before grabbing their 17th-consecutive appearance at the NCAA DII Championships from their runner-up finish at the NCAA East Regional. Academically, Stonehill registered a 3.48 cumulative GPA through the fall semester.
Senior co-captain Knox posted multiple career-best performances this season, as she finished first in two of the five meets she ran in. She kicked off the season with a second-place mark a the Division II/III Challenge and then was the second Division II competitor to cross the finish line at the New England Championships with her 20th-place mark. At the NE10 Championship, she became the third-straight Stonehill individual champion and NE10 Women's Athlete of the Year, as the team captured its 16th title in program history, two points in front of runner-up Assumption College. Stonehill then punched its 17th-straight ticket to NCAA Championships with its runner-up performance at the East Regional Championship, where Knox also collected the Skyhawks' third-straight individual title and her third All-East Region honor giving her the title of USTFCCCA Division II East Region Women's Athlete of the Year. In Indiana at the Championships, Knox finished a career-best 27th for her first All-America honor.
Co-captain Hersom also had career performances this year, as she appeared in her first NCAA Championship. Hersom finished 15th at the Division II/III Challenge and Codfish Bowl and then placed 82nd at the New England Championships. At the NE10 Championships, Hersom earned her first NE10 All-Conference honor with a ninth-place finish, while she assisted Stonehill at the East Regional Championships with a 48th-place mark in her first East Regional Championship.
Cyr finished in the top-10 in three of the five meets she ran in, including third at the NE10 Championship, where she finished 12th last year. She also took home sixth at both the Division II/III Challenge and the East Regional Championship. At the New England Championship she finished 32nd for her best mark so far at the meet, while she competed in her second NCAA Championship in the Purple and White.
Lastra, who has earned her second USTFCCCA All-Academic honor, ran in her second NCAA Championship this season. She also saw a 21st place finish at the NE10 Championship for her second NE10 All-Conference mark. Lastra kicked off the season with a fifth-place tally at the Codfish Bowl and then followed that up in 74th at the New England Championships. Before heading to Indiana for the NCAA Championships, Lastra took home 38th at the East Regional Championship.
Freeman, appearing in her first East Regional Championship and NCAA Championship, improved her time at the NE10 Championship, placing 13th for her first NE10 All-Conference mark. She also earned three other top-20 marks in the seven meets she ran in, including a fourth-place tally at the Shacklette Invitational and a 12th-place finish at the East Regional Championship for her first-career All-East Region honor.
Curtin was one of the four Skyhawks running in her first NCAA Championship this year, after her seventh-place finish at the East Regional Championship for her first All-East Region accolade. Prior to the East Regional, she placed 19th at the NE10 Championship, earning her first All-Conference honor as the third freshman across the finish line. Curtin also had two other top-10 finishes this season with a fifth-place mark at the Shacklette Invitational and a 10th-place tally at the Division II/III Challenge.
Rounding out Stonehill's seven USTFCCCA All-Academic performers for the 2017 cross country season is Anderle, who also appeared in her first NCAA Championship. Anderle had three top-25 results this season. The freshman placed 10th in the opening Shacklette Invitational and then 24th at the Codfish Bowl, while earning 12th at the NE10 Championship earning a spot on the All-Conference team.
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