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Four from women’s track and field win national All-Academic honors

Posted by: Andy Walter on July 11, 2008

Alexander

Duncan

Kirkland

Marino

NEW ORLEANS — Four members of the Bates College women’s track and field team were named to the 2008 USTFCCCA Division III Women’s All-Academic Track and Field Team, announced Thursday by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

The criteria for winning the honor is to have a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 and have met the NCAA Division III indoor or outdoor automatic or provisional qualifying standard in their respective event.

Bates’ four awardees this year were junior Isabel Alexander (Harvard, Mass.), sophomore Vantiel Elizabeth Duncan (Topsham, Maine), senior Cassandra Kirkland (Greene, Maine) and junior Jen Marino (Methuen, Mass.).

Alexander, a team captain, won her second All-America honor in the indoor season by finishing sixth at nationals in the 800 meters. She followed that by capping the indoor season with a sixth-place finish in the 400-meter hurdles. Named Female Athlete of the Year at Bates, Alexander last month was named First Team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District.

Duncan took All-America honors in the indoor weight throw, finishing sixth, and also competed at outdoor nationals in the hammer throw and shot put. Last month last month she was named Second Team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District.

Kirkland met the provisional qualifying mark in the hammer throw and won All-ECAC and All-New England honors. She was inducted into the Bates Scholar-Athlete Society during Commencement Weekend and received four NESCAC All-Academic awards.

Marino broke the outdoor long jump, the indoor 4×400 relay, and both the indoor and outdoor triple jump records at Bates in 2008, and she qualified provisionally for the NCAA outdoor championships in the triple jump. Marino is already a three-time NESCAC All-Academic award winner.

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