Seven Athena Runners Earn All-Academic Distinction from USTFCCCA

CLAREMONT, Calif. - All seven eligible runners from the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's cross country team earned All-Academic honors from the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), the organization announced this week.

The CMS women's cross country team also earned All-Academic Team honors for carrying a combined 3.73 GPA, easily surpassing the minimum standard of a 3.1. 

In order to qualify for All-Academic distinction, student athletes must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.30 on a 4.0 scale and finish in the top-25 percent of their respective regional championship meet. All seven CMS student-athletes who competed at the NCAA Division III Regionals this year in Riverside met both minimum standards, helping the Athenas capture the regional title before going on to finish fourth at nationals (just seven points out of first). 

Seniors Natalie Bitetti and Laura Zimmer, junior Angie Gushue, sophomores Riley Capuano, Elle Marsyla and Sara Wexler, and first-year Revere Schmidt were each among the honorees recognized by the USTFCCCA. 

All seven Athenas earned All-West Region honors for their finishes at the regionals, while Bitetti, Marsyla and Capuano went on to earn All-America honors, with Bitetti finishing as the national runner-up, matching the highest finish for any Athena in program history. Capuano finished 11th, recording the largest improvement in the nation from 2022 to 2023 (257th place to 11th), while Marsyla came in 27th. 

CMS brought home the fourth-place trophy from nationals, its second piece of hardware from the NCAA in the last three seasons. In 2021, the Athenas came in second place at the NCAA Championships, its highest finish ever. CMS also won its 13th straight SCIAC title, dating back to 2010.