Members of the Pittsburg State men’s and women’s track and field teams earned honors for their achievements in athletics and academics.
On the women’s team, Haven Lander and Trace Mosby, were named MIAA Scholar Athletes. Members of the men’s team were also named MIAA Scholar Athletes including Bryce Grahn, Joshua Hudiburg, Mason Strader, Brett Thompson and Levi Wyrick.
To be named an MIAA Scholar Athlete, athletes must have a GPA of 3.5 or better, have completed two or more terms, and must have also earned All-MIAA honors in the sport for the current season.
“It’s always fun to get academic awards so it definitely feels good,” said Lander, a graduate student in human resource development. “It’s nice to see your hard work in class pay off.”
Hudiburg, who graduated in the spring with a master’s degree in leisure and service management, was also glad to see all the effort he puts in outside of athletics pay off.
“It feels great to see that my hard work in the classroom does not go unnoticed,” Hudiburg said.
This track and field season was Hudiburg’s last.
“My favorite moment from this season was throwing a PR of 72.18 on my last throw ever as a Gorilla at the national track meet,” Hudiburg said.
This was also the last track and field season for Lander.
“I think my favorite moment from this season was after my last jump at nationals,” Lander said. “All the girls that I had jumped with for the last four years gave me hugs and good words, but the best moment was my last few words with Rutledge as my coach. It was a lot of reflecting on my last four years and it was so good to know the impact I had on him and this school. No moment can top that.”
26 men and 23 women were named to the MIAA Academic honor roll. Requirements for athletes to be named to the MIAA Academic Honor Roll include a 3.0 GPA or higher and must have completed two or more terms, not including summer terms.
The men’s team athletes were Nizar Alarahshun, Diego Contreras, Chase Dalton, Jacob Ewer, Grant Fairchild, Grahn, Graham Hudelson, Hudiburg, Ben Kahnk, Bryce Kaufmann, Michael Marinakis, Trey Mooney, Matthew Oglesby, Jacob Querry, Nicholas Ray, Christian Roth, Mitchell Sailer, Connar Southard, Mason Stader, Kameron Swenson, Thompson, Charles Wallace, Colin Webber, Matt Wilson and Wyrick.
The women’s athletes were Chloe Bloom, Allison Brumley, Madison Burt, Andrea Chestnut, Jaden Courter, Shelbi Day, Megan Eckman, Sophia Frisch, Halle Helfrich, Hannah Honeyman, Jaci Huckabee, Monica Jirak, Kelsey Kinkade, Kinsey Laird, Lander, Allary Libertore, Trace Mosby, McKenzie Penne, Lauren Redwin, Madison Redwine, Madison Reese, Cami Roy, Emerson Tice and Cassidy Westhoff.
Additionally, Chestnut, Kinkade, Libertore, and Roy from the women’s team and Hudelson, Hudiburg, Oglesby, Ray, Thompson, and Webber from the men’s team earned the prestigious MIAA Academic Excellence Award. Recipients of that award are required to have a 4.0 GPA and must have completed two or more terms, not including summer terms.