Miners Lilian Koech, Yanique Bannett, Rasmus Maukonen and Sven Zellner were named to the 2016 U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division I All-Academic team.
On the women’s side, Koech entered her freshman cross country season in stellar fashion. The distance runner was named the 2015 Conference USA Freshman of the Meet after finishing in 11th in the 5K run with a time of 18:05.6. Koech ran a personal-best of 17:09.8 in the 5K at the Notre Dame Invitational. The freshman is a biology major and checks in with a 3.57 GPA.
Bennett clocked in a personal-best of 58.27 in the 400m hurdles at the C-USA Championships where she took silver. The transfer went on to qualify at the NCAA West Preliminaries and posted a time of 59.05. The junior is a multidisciplinary studies major and holds a 3.25 GPA.
Maukonen notched a personal-best of 73.64m in the javelin throw at the UTEP Springtime. The sophomore posted four top-10 finishes and qualified for the NCAA West Preliminaries. Maukonen sits at a 3.67 GPA in multidisciplinary studies.
Zellner is a two-time member of the C-USA All-Academic team. The Germany native participated in all 12 events this year for the Orange and Blue. The senior picked up a sixth-place showing in the 60m hurdles at the 2016 C-USA Indoor Championships. He also ran the best 110m hurdles time of his career at the UTEP Springtime with a time of 14.07. The senior is a mechanical engineering major and has a 3.82 GPA.
To qualify for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Track & Field Team, the student-athlete must have compiled a cumulative GPA of 3.25 and have met at least one of the following athletic standards: For the indoor season, a student-athlete must have finished the regular season ranked in the national top 96 in an individual event or ranked in the national top 48 (collective listing) in a relay event on the official NCAA POP list provided by TFRRS.org.
For the outdoor season, a student-athlete must have participated in any round of the NCAA Division I Championships (including preliminary rounds).
