National Champ Cazzola Named 2012 Division III Cross Country Women’s Scholar Athlete of the Year

NEW ORLEANS – Christy Cazzola of UW-Oshkosh was named the USTFCCCA NCAA Division III Women’s Scholar Athlete of the Year for the 2012 cross country season by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). This fall, Cazzola was the winner of the Division III Cross Country Championships.

Scholar Athletes are determined from among those who earned All-Academic status and placed highest individually at the most recent NCAA Championships.

USTFCCCA NCAA Division III
Cross Country Women’s Scholar Athlete of the Year – Christy Cazzola, UW-Oshkosh

Cazzola, a senior special education major from Kaukauna, Wis., has earned a 3.344 cumulative grade point average through the 2012 fall semester.

She became the third UW-Oshkosh student-athlete to win a national cross country title in 2012, storming back from an 11-second deficit with 1000 meters remaining in the 6k race to claim victory in 20:53 – finishing 15 seconds ahead of runner-up Alison Steinbrunner of Ohio Northern and 20 seconds ahead of third-place Keri Lambert of Amherst.

Cazzola capped her UW-Oshkosh cross country career with the title, the culmination of a three-year run that saw her finish fourth in 2010 and runner-up last season. She also claimed the NCAA Midwest Regional and WIAC Championship individual titles.

Past Winners

2012: Christy Cazzola, UW-Oshkosh
2011: Chiara Del Piccolo, Williams
2010: Jennifer Gossels, Williams
2009: Marie Borner, Bethel (Minn.)
2008: Elise Tropiano, Amherst
2007: Sarah Zerzan, Willamette
2006: Sarah Zerzan, Willamette

201 Earn All-Academic Status

In addition to the Scholar Athlete of the Year, the USTFCCCA also announced those women who earned 2012 Division III All-Academic Cross Country status.

A total of 201 student-athletes represent the 104 institutions that compose the group. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Haverford led the way six on the All-Academic list. They were followed by six schools with five apiece.

All of the top 10 finishers from the NCAA Cross Country Championships in the fall earned All-Academic honors. In addition, 19 of the national championships’ top 25 finishers also earned the All-Academic acclaim. Six on the All-Academic list reported cumulative GPAs of 4.0 through the fall semester.

To qualify for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Track and Field Team, the student-athlete must have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 or greater through the most-recent semester and placed in the top 35 at the NCAA Regional Championships.

USTFCCCA 2012 Division III Women’s Cross Country All-Academic Honorees