Six Buffs Earn USTFCCCA All-Academic Honors

NEW ORLEANS -The University of Colorado men's and women's cross country teams placed six individuals on the USTFCCCA's All-Academic Teams for the 2014 season.

Sophomore Ben Saarel recorded his second USTFCCCA Academic honor after placing seventh at the NCAA Championships for his second All-America honor, helping to guide the Buffs to their second straight NCAA Cross Country title in as many years. An engineering physics major, he has accumulated an impressive 3.985 GPA in three semesters.

The CU women were well represented on the all-academic team, with five individuals taking home honors. Freshman Kaitlyn Benner, a physics major, finished the semester with a perfect 4.00 GPA. Graduate student Sara Sutherland recorded a 3.67 GPA and is getting her masters in interdisciplinary communications and technology. Junior Jenny DeSouchet is majoring in English and has recorded a 3.51 GPA.

Another pair of Buffs took home academic honors. Sophomore Erin Clark, who is majoring in integrative physiology, owns a 3.37 GPA and junior Maddie Alm, also an integrative physiology major, has a 3.31 GPA. Clark was an All-American, finishing 31st at the NCAA Championship to lead CU.

Honorees must have compiled a cumulative GPA or 3.25 or greater and must have finished as an All-American or among the 15 finishers (or 10 percent) in their regional meet. In total, 153 women and 91 men in NCAA Division I earned the honor.

As a team, the women also earned All-Academic status, recording a 3.36 GPA. The women's team finished the season with a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Championships. The Buffs also won the NCAA Mountain Region Championship and placed third at Pac-12s.

USTFCCCA Men's Cross Country All-Academic

USTFCCCA Women's Cross Country All-Academic