NEW ORLEANS, La. — The academic success continued for Eastern Washington track and field this offseason as the program earned honors from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Eastern's men's and women's teams both earned USTFCCCA All-Academic team honors. Three Eagles earned All-Academic athlete honors, with the group consisting of Caitlin Simmons, Kimberly Smith and Lucas Couron.

EWU women's team qualified for the award with a 3.44 cumulative GPA and the men carried a 3.11 GPA. 

"Egypt" Simmons rewrote the Eastern record book in jumps this year in both the indoor and outdoor seasons. Simmons set the indoor long jump record (6.09m) and the triple jump (12.75m). She then set the outdoor record in long jump (6.52m) and triple jump (12.88m). At the indoor Big Sky Championships, Simmons won both the long and triple, while winning the long jump at the outdoor championships and placing second in the triple jump.

"Tuti" Smith gave EWU two stand-out jumpers this season, as she posted a 5.68m long jump during the indoor season to place 10th on the program's all-time performance list. Moving to the outdoor season, Smith initall broke the Eastern long jump record (6.27m), before Simmons topped the mark later in the season. Smith's mark sits a second on the all-time list.

Couron went into the Eagle record books during the indoor season, recording a 5.11m vault to place third all-time. During the outdoor season, Couron's 5.16m vault placed him second on the all-time list. 

Team criteria for All-Academic

• The cumulative GPA (not 2023-24 academic year, not semester) for 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, including the most recent grading period, certifiable by either NCAA Faculty Rep or NCAA Compliance Coordinator or Registrar's Office. Institutions utilizing a different GPA scale must convert the GPA to a 4.0 scale using the standard conversion method [GPA/Scale x 4.0].
• The cumulative GPA of all student-athletes on the institution's NCAA Squad List for Indoor and/or Outdoor Track and Field must be computed by the following method:
• Total the cumulative number of semester hours or quarter hours earned for all student-athletes on the NCAA Squad List, including the most recent grading period;
• Total the cumulative number of quality points (GPA multiplied by the number of credit hours) earned by all student-athletes on the NCAA Squad List, including the most recent grading period;
• Divide the cumulative number of quality points earned by the cumulative number of semester or quarter hours earned.

Individual criteria for All-Academic

• Minimum CUMULATIVE grade point average of 3.25 on a 4.0 scale, including the most recent grading period, certifiable by either NCAA Faculty Rep or NCAA Compliance Coordinator or Registrar's Office. Institutions utilizing a different GPA scale must convert the GPA to a 4.0 scale using the standard conversion method [GPA/Scale x 4.0].
• Must have completed at least two (2) semesters or three (3) quarters at the nominating institution.
• Athletic criteria for the award:
  • For the indoor season: 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, certifiable by their place on final season performance lists on TFRRS for Indoor Track and Field (including performances achieved outside the qualifying window during the indoor season).
  • For the outdoor season: must have 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, certifiable by their place on the NCAA Division I

 

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ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.

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