Eastern Michigan Athletics
Track & Field Earns USTFCCCA Academic Awards
7/23/2021 12:09:00 PM | Men's Track & Field, Women's Track & Field
The Eagles earned team and individual all-academic honors
NEW ORLEANS, La. (EMUEagles.com) — The Eastern Michigan University track & field team earned United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic honors for the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons, the organization announced Thursday, July 22. Both teams, as well as 17 total individuals, received all-academic distinction.
To earn USTFCCCA Team All-Academic honors, the cumulative grade-point average of all student-athletes on the institution's NCAA Squad List for Indoor and/or Outdoor Track and Field must be 3.0-or-higher on a 4.0 scale. The women's team notched a cumulative team grade-point average of 3.53 while the men achieved a GPA of 3.37.
For an individual to pick up USTFCCCA All-Academic status, student-athletes must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.25 on a 4.0 scale and meet specific indoor and outdoor participation marks. For the indoor season, student-athletes must have finished the season ranked in the top-96 in any championship individual event, or in the top-48 in any championship relay event, for the most recent indoor season. Additionally, student-athletes must have also participated in any round of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships (the Preliminary Championship Competition and/or the Final Championship Competition) or for the multi-events, must have finished the season ranked in the top-48 in the East or top-48 in the West for the most recent outdoor season.
On the women's side, seniors Kadian Clarke (Kingston, Jamaica-Immaculate Conception) and Keypathwa Gibson (Toledo, Ohio-Roy C. Start), juniors Tiffany Cernej-Garcia (Ann Arbor, Mich.-Ann Arbor Pioneer), Morgan Iverson (Hoschton, Ga.-Mill Creek), Lexi Seifert (Waterford, Pa.-Villa Maria Academy), Nina Ward (Fairfield, Ohio-Fairfield), and Chevonne Wheeler (Redford, Mich.-Divine Child), and sophomore Alyson Davis (Summerfield, N.C.-Weaver Academy for Performing and Visual Arts) all grabbed individual honors.
Clarke maintained a 3.77 GPA as a Finance major while setting while setting program-bests in the weight throw (19.82m), outdoor shot put (14.83m), and hammer throw (58.27m).
Gibson produced a GPA of 3.67 in the field of Sport management. At the Outdoor Mid-American Conference Championships, the Toledo, Ohio native helped the 4x400 relay team place fourth in 3:42.33, May 8.
Cernej-Garcia recorded a 3.46 GPA while working towards a degree in Psychology. The Ann Arbor, Mich. product earned a bid to the NCAA East Preliminary Championships in the 400H after recording a time of 1:00.32 in the event at the Texas Relays, March 25.
Iverson eclipsed a GPA of 3.88 as a Computer science major. At the Outdoor Mid-American Conference Championships, the Hoschton, Ga. native recorded a personal-best time of 14.18 in the 100H for third during the prelims, May 7.
Seifert, a biology major with a 3.99 GPA, made strides this year as a middle-distance runner setting career-bests in the 800m (2:14.04) and 1500m (4:29.19) races.
Ward maintained a GPA of 3.60 while pursuing a Psychology degree. The Fairfield, Ohio native made her way into the EMU record book with a 6.31m long jump at the Spec Towns Invitational, April 9, ranking third all-time at Eastern Michigan for the outdoor season.
Wheeler notched a 3.89 GPA in Exercise science. At the Indoor MAC Championships, Feb. 26-27, the junior helped the distance medley relay team (11:39.15) and 4x400 relay team (3:50.90) place third and fourth, respectively.
Davis also boasts a 3.89 GPA within the Exercise science field and has contributed greatly to the team's sprint squad. At the outdoor league meet, the Summerfield, N.C. native finished runner-up in the 100m dash in an 11.77 and ran the first leg of the winning 4x100 team that crossed the finish line in 45.64, May 8.
Additionally, the men saw graduate students Taige Bryant (Edmond, Okla.-Edmond Memorial) and Zach Harkey (Huron, Ohio-Huron), senior Chukwusom Enekwechi (Valley Stream, N.Y.-Jamaica Gateway to the Sciences (Monroe College)), junior Baldvin Magnusson (Akureyri, Iceland-Hull University), redshirt sophomores Chris Devaney (New Plymouth, New Zealand-New Plymouth) and Andy Payne (Worthington, Ohio-Thomas Worthington), sophomore Kappa Bedoui (Doha, Qatar-Aspire Academy), redshirt freshman Toby Gualter (Tawa, New Zealand-Tawa College), and freshman Kaleb Simpson (Bexley, Ohio-St. Charles Preparatory).
Bryant maintained a 3.73 GPA as a Health administration major and became the only Eagle across both teams to earn All-American status in the indoor and outdoor seasons. The Edmond, Okla. product finished 11th in the weight throw at the NCAA Indoor Championships with a toss of 21.13m, March 11. Meanwhile, the veteran thrower qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in both the hammer and discus throws.
A clinical research administration major, Harkey earned a 3.33 GPA. The graduate won the discus competition at the Outdoor MAC Championships meet in the discus throw (54.10m) and was runner-up in the hammer throw (66.51m), May 7-8.
Enekwechi produced a GPA of 3.34 while pursuing a degree in Exercise science. The Valley Stream, N.Y. native finished runner-up in the shot put at the Outdoor MAC Championships with a heave of 17.32m, May 7.
Magnusson, an Exercise science major with a GPA of 3.41, produced a stellar year for the Eagles. At the Indoor MAC Championships, the Akureyri, Iceland native won the mile (4:09.23), 3000m (8:08.49), and anchored distance medley relay (10:00.10), Feb. 26-27. Overall, Magnusson ranks second in EMU history in the 3000m (7:53.72), third in the 1500m (3:40.74), and fourth in the 5000m (13:45.66).
Devaney boasts a 3.99 GPA as a Finance major. The New Zealand product then put his athleticism on full display at the indoor conference championships, pacing the field in the 5000m race, crossing the finish line in 14:17.81. For his efforts, Devaney was named the league's Most Outstanding Track Performer.
Payne achieved a GPA of 3.29 in Psychology. A strong member of the men's distance squad, the Worthington, Ohio native placed third at the league's outdoor championship meet in the 10K race with a time of 29:46.19, May 7.
Bedoui registered a 3.26 GPA in Cyber defense. The sophomore thrower produced a career-high hammer throw of 64.51m at the NCAA East Preliminary Championships, narrowly missing out on qualifying for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, May 26.
Gualter, a Sport management with a 3.60 GPA, recorded a solid season as a member of the men's distance squad. At the Indoor MAC Championships, the Tawa, New Zealand native grabbed second in the 5000m (14:18.80) and third in the 3000m (8:17.11) races, Feb. 26-27.
Simpson earned a 3.50 GPA during his first year on campus and made an immediate impact as a sprinter. The freshman was honored as the MAC's Freshman Track Athlete of the Year after taking second in both the 60m (6.83) and 200m (21.75) dashes, Feb. 27.
For updates on all things Eastern Michigan cross country and track and field, continue to check EMUEagles.com or follow the team on Instagram, @EMUXC_TF, and Twitter, @EMUXC_TF.
EMU Team GPAs:
Women's Team - 3.53
Men's Team - 3.37
EMU Individual Awardees
Kappa Bedoui, Sophomore, Cyber Defense, 3.26
Taige Bryant, Graduate Student, Health administration, 3.73
Tiffany Cernej-Garcia, Junior, Psychology, 3.46
Kadian Clarke, Senior, Finance, 3.73
Alyson Davis, Sophomore, Exercise science, 3.89
Chris Devaney, Redshirt sophomore, Finance, 3.99
Chukwusom Enekwechi, Senior, Exercise science, 3.34
Keypathwa Gibson, Senior, Sport management, 3.67
Toby Gualter, Redshirt freshman, Sport management, 3.60
Zach Harkey, Graduate Student, Clinical health administration, 3.33
Morgan Iverson, Junior, Computer science, 3.88
Baldvin Magnusson, Junior, Exercise science, 3.41
Andy Payne, Redshirt sophomore, Psychology, 3.29
Lexi Seifert, Junior, Biology, 3.93
Kaleb Simpson, Freshman, Business, 3.50
Nina Ward, Junior, Psychology, 3.60
Chevonne Wheeler, Junior, Exercise science, 3.89
Players Mentioned
