WHITE PLAINS, NY — Both the Iona College men’s and women’s track and field programs and four individual student-athletes were recognized by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) for their academic accomplishments during the 2015 track season.
Senior Andrew Kowalsky, junior Kate Avery and graduate students Rosie Clarke and Tara Jameson earned USTFCCCA All-Academic Individual honors while the two programs were named to the team list.
A total of 838 women and 529 men from 372 teams earned USTFCCCA All-Academic honors for their combined academic and athletic accomplishments. To qualify for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Track and Field Team, the student-athlete must have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 and have met at least one of the following athletic standards:
For the indoor season, a student-athlete must have finished the regular season ranked in the national top 96 in an individual event or ranked in the national top 48 (collective listing) in a relay event on the official NCAA POP list provided by TFRRS.org
For the outdoor season, a student-athlete must have participated in any round of the NCAA Division I Championships (including preliminary rounds).
Kowalsky qualified athletically with his participation in the 10,000-meter event at the 2015 NCAA East Preliminaries. He qualified with an IC4A Championship winning 29:21.49 on May 15.
Avery earned the standard both on the indoor and outdoor track. Her school record 15:25.6 at the Stanford Invitational on Apr. 4 ranked No. 1 in the nation heading into the NCAA Championship. Avery earned All-America honors by finishing fourth overall in the NCAA 5k final.
Clarke qualified with her times in the winter and spring. Her best effort came in the indoor mile with a 4:31.78 during the regular season at the 108th NYRR Millrose Games in New York City. Clarke went on to lower her school record in the event by .03 second with her fourth place, All-America finish at the NCAA Championships in March.
While she did not compete in the NCAA Indoor Championships, Jameson’s 16:18.34 in the 5k event at the Boston University Last Chance Meet on Mar. 1 was the 40th fastest time in the nation.
A total of 13 MAAC student-athletes (nine women, four men) were named to the USTFCCCA All-Academic list: Lydia Wehrli, Clement Gicquel, and Love Litzell from Manhattan, Michelle Gaye from Marist, Taylor Johnson, Kelsey Reese, and Taylor Bernstein from Monmouth, Shameal Samuels from Quinnipiac and Emily Ritter from Rider.
As a team, the women’s program ranked 33rd with their 2014-15 team GPA of 3.47. A total of 224 women’s teams including six from the MAAC were recognized for achieving a GPA of 3.00 or higher. Of the 123 men’s programs, Iona ranked 29th with a team GPA of 3.25. It was the highest among the five MAAC men’s teams on the list.