Rupp and Braun have been chosen as the winners of the Academic All-America® of the Year award in the University and College Divisions, respectively.
A Business Administration major with a 3.87 G.P.A., Rupp won the NCAA Division I championships in the 5,000-meter run and the 10,000-meter run earlier this month. The NCAA cross country champion in the fall, Rupp led the Ducks to a second place finish at the NCAA championship track and field meet. A 14-time All-American in his college career, Rupp also won the 3,000-meter title and the 5,000-meter championship at the NCAA Indoor Championship Meet. In addition to leading Oregon to a second place showing at the NCAA Outdoor Championship, he led the Ducks to the 2008 NCAA Cross Country title and the 2009 NCAA Indoor Track championship.
Rupp, who was also named as a first team selection on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s Track and Field and Cross Country University Division Teams in 2006 and 2007, was a member of the United States Olympic team in 2008. A native of Portland, Oregon, he broke the U.S. record in the indoor 5,000-meter run in February.
A repeat selection as a first team choice on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s Track and Field and Cross Country College Division Teams, Braun is a Mathematics major with a minor in Athletic Coaching and a 3.77 G.P.A. A four-time national champion in his career, he led Adams State to a third place finish at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championship Meet. Honored as the USTFCCCA National Indoor and Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year as a senior, he won the one-mile title at the 2009 NCAA Indoor Meet.
A native of Fort Collins, Colorado, Braun was the NCAA Division II runner-up in cross country as a junior and senior. The winner of back-to-back Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference cross country championships, he earned 14 All-American honors in his college career.
Rupp is one of seven Scholar-Athletes who are repeat selections on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s Track and Field and Cross Country University Division Team. Senior Mat Clark of Northern Iowa, graduate student Javier Garcia-Tunon of Florida State, senior David Kinsella of Portland, senior Scott Sellers of Kansas State, senior Ryan Vail of Oklahoma State and senior Xuehan Xiong of Arizona were named to the first team for the second year in a row.
Senior Kevin Kumlien of the United States Military Academy and senior Brett Olson of Rice earned first team honors after being named to the second team last year. Senior Alex Godell of Colorado State, a third team choice in 2008, also moved up to the first team.
Seniors Garrett Heath of Stanford, Andrew Ledwith of Iona and Patrick Smyth of Notre Dame join junior Philip Adam of Rice and junior David McNeill of Northern Arizona on the first team.
A Biology major with a 3.69 G.P.A., Clark was a standout performer in the decathlon at Northern Iowa. A two-time All-American in his career, the Ames, Iowa native won the Missouri Valley Conference championship in the decathlon as a senior.
A graduate student who is working on his Master’s degree in Business Administration, Garcia-Tunon has been a top performer in the 400-hurdles during his career. A three-time Academic All-America ® selection, the Miami, Florida native led the Seminoles to their seventh straight Atlantic Coast Conference Indoor Championship in 2009. A member of Florida State’s NCAA outdoor runner-up team, he capped off his career by winning the ACC outdoor championship in the 400-hurdles while helping FSU win the ACC title.
The West Coast Conference individual cross country champion, Kinsella led Portland to its 30th straight conference title. A Biology major with a 3.96 G.P.A., he finished fourth at the NCAA Cross Country Meet.
A seven-time All-American in the high jump at Kansas State, Sellers is a Finance major with a 3.63 G.P.A. The two-time Big 12 Conference champion in the high jump, the Katy, Texas native was the 2009 NCAA indoor high jump champion and also won the 2007 NCAA outdoor title in the high jump.
An International Studies major with a 3.63 G.P.A., Vail led Oklahoma State to its first Big 12 Conference cross country championship. A three-time All-American in cross country, he set the school record in the 5,000-meter outdoor run.
A Computer Science major with a perfect 4.00 G.P.A., Xiong qualified for the NCAA West Regionals in the 200-meter run and the 4x100-relay. A native of Wuhan, China, he was part of the University of Arizona 4x100 relay team that earned All-American honors in 2007.
A standout performer in the javelin at West Point, Kumlien was the Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year for outdoor track in 2008. A Management major with a 3.83 G.P.A., he was the team captain of the Cadets. A native of Bozeman, Montana, Kumlien battled through an injury-plagued senior season to finish fourth in the Patriot League in the javelin throw.
A Civil Engineering major with a 3.93 G.P.A., Olson is one of two Rice representatives on the first team. An outstanding distance runner, the Flower Mound, Texas native finished fifth in the 3000-meter steeplechase at the Conference-USA Meet in 2009. As a senior, he also finished 18th at the C-USA cross country championship meet.
Godell, who won his third consecutive Mountain West Conference championship in the hammer throw, is an Economics major with a 3.92 G.P.A. In his senior season, he also finished 13th at the NCAA Indoor Championship Meet in the hammer throw.
A nine-time All-American, Heath was the NCAA Division I runner-up in the 1500-meter run at the national championship meet, leading Stanford to a seventh place finish. A Management Science and Engineering major with a 3.81 G.P.A., he was a member of the national champion distance medley relay team in 2007.
An All-American cross country runner at Iona College, Ledwith is a Finance major with a 3.80 G.P.A. A native of Athboy, Ireland, he finished third at the NCAA Cross Country Championship Meet as a senior. A three-time all-region selection, he was a three-time Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champion.
A four-time All-BIG EAST Conference cross country pick for Notre Dame, Smyth is a History major with a 3.75 G.P.A. Named as a three-time All-American for the Fighting Irish track and field team, he finished tenth at the 2008 NCAA cross country championship meet. A native of Salt Lake City, Utah, Smyth won three BIG EAST titles in his career.
An Economics major with a 3.94 G.P.A., Adam won the Conference USA outdoor championship in the decathlon as a senior. A very versatile performer for Rice, he also ranks among the C-USA’s top performers in the high jump and the pole vault.
A two-time All-American for Northern Arizona’s cross country team, McNeill is an Exercise Science major with a 3.73 G.P.A. The Melbourne, Australia native won the Big Sky Conference cross country title as a senior. He also earned All-American honors in the 3000-meter indoor run and the 5000-meter outdoor run.
The 15 members of the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s Track and Field and Cross Country University Division first team have an average G.P.A. of 3.83.
Braun is one of only four repeat selections on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s Track and Field and Cross Country College Division first team. He is joined on the first team by graduate student Matt Gersick, his teammate at Adams State. Senior Brian Harvey of Carnegie Mellon and senior Ted McMillan of Augustana (Ill.) are also repeat first team picks.
Seniors Jordan Henry of Missouri Science and Technology and Sam Johnson of Wisconsin Eau Claire, a pair of second team selections last year, were named to the first team in 2009. Senior Mark Husted of the Colorado School of Mines earned first team notice after being named to the third team last year.
Seniors Michael Barnes of Denison, Phil Bastron of St. Thomas (MInn.), Eric Buss of Saint John’s (Minn.), Derek Carson of Nebraska Wesleyan, Jon Garrett of Pittsburg State, David McKay of Luther, Henry Reich of Luther and Todd Wildman of Trinity (Tex.) complete the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s Track and Field and Cross Country College Division first team.
A graduate student with a major in Human Performance and Physical Education, Gersick helped Adams State finish third in NCAA Division II with a pair of strong performances. He finished fourth in the shot put and sixth in the discus throw. An eight-time All-American, the Pueblo West, Colorado native won the national championship in the shot put in 2008.
The NCAA Division III runner-up in the 5,000-meter run as a senior, Harvey earned three All-American honors in his career for Carnegie Mellon. A Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering major with a 3.97 G.P.A., the Ellicott City, Maryland native graduated with six school records.
A Chemistry major with a 3.54 G.P.A., McMillan was a multiple-event standout at Augustana (Ill.). He qualified for the NCAA Division III meet in the high jump, the 110-high hurdles and the 400-hurdles. A native of Cordova, Illinois, he graduated with 18 individual or relay conference titles and 12 All-American awards.
A second team selection on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s Track and Field and Cross Country College Division team last year, Henry was a record-setting performer in the pole vault at Missouri University Science & Technology. An Electrical Engineering major with a 3.90 G.P.A., he was the four-time conference champion in the pole vault. A native of St. Charles, Missouri, he was the NCAA Division II runner-up in the pole vault twice.
The 2009 NCAA Division III champion in the indoor weight throw, Johnson is a Physics/Engineering and Mathematics major with a 3.93 G.P.A. The Deer Park, Wisconsin native earned his degree in Physics and Engineering from Wisconsin-Eau Claire in three-and-a-half years. He added a major in Mathematics so he could compete for the outdoor track team in 2009. Johnson finished fourth in the hammer throw at the national championship outdoor meet.
A member of the Colorado School of Mines’ national champion Indoor Distance Medley Relay Team, Husted is an Electrical Engineering major with a 3.87 G.P.A. Honored as an All-American five times, Husted helped CSM finish eighth at the Outdoor Nationals as a junior. The Westminster, Colorado native set school records in the 600-meter run and the 800-meter run.
A two-sport standout who also played football at Denison, Barnes was named as the North Coast Athletic Conference Sprinter of the Year twice. A two-year starter at quarterback for the Big Red football team, he was a five-time NCAC individual champion. An Economics major with a 3.87 G.P.A., Barnes was captain of the football and track teams at Denison. A native of Gates Mills, Ohio, Barnes was president of Denison Student-Athlete Advisory Council and a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
An Economics and International Business major with a 3.93 G.P.A., Bastron earned All-America honors on three relay teams at St. Thomas University. A Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin native, he was part of the NCAA Division III national championship 4x400 relay team that helped St. Thomas finished third in the nation.
Buss earned All-America honors in the triple jump four times during his career at Saint John’s (Minn.). A Mathematics and Physics major with a 3.81 G.P.A., he won six Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) championships in the triple jump during his career. A native of Coon Rapids, Minnesota, he was named as the Outstanding Field Athlete at the 2009 MIAC Indoor and Outdoor championship meets.
A three-time All-American at the 2009 NCAA Division III Championship Meet, Carson is a History major with a 3.89 G.P.A. Named as an All-American five times in his career at Nebraska Wesleyan, he was a member of the national runner-up 4x100 relay team as a senior. A native of Lincoln, Nebraska, Carson was the Great Plains Athletic Conference champion in the 400-meter dash as a senior.
Garrett, who graduated from Pittsburg State with a double major of Accounting and Finance with a 4.00 G.P.A., earned All-Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association honors by finishing fifth in the one-mile run at the 2009 Indoor Meet. A native of Lansing, Kansas, he also helped PSU finish 17th at the NCAA Division II national championship cross country meet.
A Political Science major with a 3.94 G.P.A., McKay is an NCAA Post-Graduate scholar who competed for the cross country and track teams at Luther College. A two-time All-American for the Luther cross country team, he finished seventh at the national championship meet as a senior. A native of Iowa City, Iowa, he was an all-conference runner in the 10,000-meter run as a junior and senior.
Reich, who has a double major of Physics and Mathematics, led Grinnell’s cross country team to a perfect score and the championship of the Midwest Conference in 2008. In addition to winning the MWC individual cross country title, he was also the MWC champion in the 3000-meter and 5000-meter races at the conference’s indoor championship meet. A native of Mahtomedi, Minnesota, Reich was the winner of the Roy W. LeClere Award, presented to the MWC student-athlete with the highest G.P.A.
The NCAA Division III champion in the indoor pentathlon, Wildman was named as the USTFCCCA Male Indoor Field Athlete of the Year as a senior. A Business Administration and Accounting major with a 3.66 G.P.A., he earned All-America notice in three events for Trinity University (Tex.). A native of Dallas, Texas, Wildman was also honored as the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Male Athlete of the Year.
The 15 members of the Academic All-America® College Division first team honorees have an average G.P.A. of 3.86.
To be eligible for Academic All-America® consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director.
Since the program’s inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 14,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.
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