Olson, Cobbers Earn USTFCCCA All-Academic Honors
MOORHEAD, Minn. (7/25/13)—Senior Erik Olson and Concordia earned U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) national academic honors. Olson was named to the All-Academic Team and the Cobber finished in the top 25 of the Division III All-Academic Teams.
Olson, who carries a 3.40 grade point average while majoring in Communications, earns the award for the first time in his career. It caps an outstanding indoor and outdoor track and field season which saw him break the 30-year-old school record in the pole vault and earn All-MIAC honors at the MIAC Outdoor Championship Meet.
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 and have met either of the following athletic standards: a student-athlete must have competed in an NCAA Indoor or Outdoor Championship or finished the regular season ranked in the national top 35 in an individual event or ranked in the national top 25 (collective listing) in a relay event on the official NCAA POP list provided by TFRRS.org.
Olson saved his best for last. He cleared 15-05.50 at the conference outdoor meet to finish in second place. His height also set a new Cobber school record and made him the undisputed King of Cobber pole vault.
Concordia finished with a team grade point average of 3.31 and finished 23rd on the list of DIII All-Academic Teams. The Cobbers were one of only three teams in the three teams from the MIAC to earn a spot in the top 25 of the DIII list.
U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic Teams
1. California Institute of Technology - 3.53
2. Principia College - 3.521
3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology - 3.52
4. Amherst College - 3.462
5. Washington University (Missouri) - 3.457
6. Connecticut College - 3.45
7. Emory University - 3.43
8. Middlebury College - 3.43
9. University of Rochester - 3.43
10. Pomona-Pitzer Colleges - 3.4215
11. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges - 3.417
12. Haverford College - 3.417
13. WPI - 3.41
14. University of Chicago - 3.4
15. Case Western Reserve University - 3.35
16. Babson College - 3.34
17. Grinnell College - 3.33
18. Illinois Wesleyan University - 3.33
19. Stevens Institute of Technology - 3.323
20. Macalester College - 3.32
21. St. Olaf College - 3.32
22. Vassar College - 3.319
23. Concordia College, Moorhead - 3.31
24. Tufts University - 3.31
25. Williams College - 3.31