Jun 21, 2006
LOWELL, MA – The UMass Lowell women's track and field team, fresh off its best spring season ever, was the recipient of the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Team Academic Award, released Monday by the USTFCCCA.
The honor celebrated men's and women's track and field teams with combined grade point averages of 3.0 or above on a 4.0 scale, as well as student-athletes with at least a 3.15 cumulative average and who achieved NCAA Championship provisional qualifying results this season.
The UML women's track and field team, made up of 44 student-athletes, posted a collective team grade point average of 3.08 this year.
UML had five women named to the USTFCCCA All-Academic Team led by junior Nicole Plante (North Adams, MA), seniors Julie Handy (Yorba Linda, CA) and Jill Thibodeau (Westminster, MA) and sophomores Gillian Mundry (Methuen, MA) and Amanda Sousa (Peabody, MA).
UML placed three on the men's team: senior John Drinkwater (Tewksbury, MA), sophomore Joey DeWitt (Ellsworth, ME) and freshman Andrew Grange (Methuen, MA).
The academic honors are the latest of several this year for Plante, Sousa, Drinkwater and DeWitt.
Plante, who earned All-American honors in the cross country season and twice in the spring in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters, was recently named to the ESPN The Magazine District 1 Academic Team as well as both the Northeast-10 Conference cross country and track and field all-academic teams.
A nursing major, Plante has maintained a 3.283 cumulative average.
Drinkwater, who graduated with a 3.621 average in political science, was cited to the ESPN The Magazine Men's District 1 Team earlier this year. He highlighted the season by earning All-American honors as well as winning the New England Championship in the 4X400 meter relay.
A criminal justice major with a 3.483, Sousa was also a member of both the NE-10 cross country and track and field all-academic teams. She enjoyed a stellar year which saw her earn All-New England honors in the distance medley relay and All-NE-10 honors in cross country and indoor track and field (4X800).
Thibodeau, a business administration major with a 3.311, joined Plante and Sousa on the NE-10 All-Academic Team earlier this year. She earned several plaudits this season, including All-New England honors in both the distance medley and the 4X400 relays, as well as the NE-10 championship in the indoor 500 meters and the outdoor 400 meter hurdles and 4X400 relay.
DeWitt, who has maintained a 3.472 in criminal justice, earned NE-10 all-academic honors during the track and field seasons and highlighted the year by capturing All-American honors in the distance medley relay. He also earned All-New England status in both the indoor and outdoor 4X800 relay.
The honor is the first for both Grange and Mundry. Grange posted a 3.203 in his first year as a business administration major, and helped the indoor 4X400 meter relay team to All-American honors. Grange also recorded the fastest time in the country during the regular season in the indoor 400 meter dash (47.67 seconds).
Also a business administration major, Mundry highlighted the year by capturing All-New England honors in the pentathlon as well as the NE-10 championship in the 4X100 meter relay.
