ANDERSON, S.C. – Anderson University cross country and track standouts Abigail Bozarth, Maddie Buddenberg, Grace Gerlock and Haylee Love have been named to the 2016-17 College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District™ Women's Track/Cross Country Team, as announced early Thursday afternoon.
The teams, selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom.
Bozarth earned Honorable Mention All-South Atlantic Conference honors in cross country and finished 38th at the NCAA Southeast Regionals in Montevallo, Ala. The Summerville, S.C., native finished fourth in the 5000 meter run at the SAC Outdoor Championships last month. She carries a 4.00 GPA and is majoring in kinesiology.
Buddenberg also captured Honorable Mention All-SAC accolades in cross country last fall and finished in seventh place in the 3000 meter steeplechase at the SAC Championships. A native of Simpsonville, S.C., Buddenberg posted three additional top-20 finishes in the 5000 meter run during the season. She is a nursing major with a 4.00 GPA.
Love, who was named the AU Female Student-Athlete of the Year last month, became the first Trojan student-athlete to earn a berth in both the NCAA Cross Country and Indoor Track & Field National Championships since 2011. The Lexington, S.C., native earned Second-Team All-Conference honors in both cross country and track, while being named All-Southeast Region in cross country. She owns the school record in the mile run, winning the event at Clemson's Tiger Tuneup. She was tops among D-II runners in the 1500 meter run at High Point and finished second in the mile run at ETSU's Buccaneer Invitational. Love is a graphic design major with a 3.67 GPA.
Gerlock, who recently earned a degree in nursing, posted a 3.92 GPA. She finished 10th at the USC Upstate Cross Country Invitational and claimed 28th place at the SAC Cross Country Championships and was 73rd at the NCAA Cross Country Regionals. The Jonesborough, Tenn., native finished sixth in the 10000 meter run at the SAC Outdoor Track Championships and notched four additional top-25 finishes during the track season.
Along with Clemson's Grace Barnett, the standouts were the only student-athletes from an NCAA Division I or Division II school in the Palmetto State to earn the academic honor.
The Academic All-District teams are divided into eight geographic districts across the United States and Canada. This is the sixth year of the expanded Academic All-America® program as CoSIDA moved from recognizing a University Division (Division I) and a College Division (all non-Division I) and has doubled the number of scholar-athletes honored. The expanded teams include NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II and NCAA Division III participants, while the College Division Academic All-America® Team combines NAIA, Canadian and two-year schools.
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 20,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.
First-team Academic All-District™ honorees advance to the CoSIDA Academic All-America® Team ballot, where first-, second- and third-team All-America® honorees will be selected later this month.
