TicketsJuly 13, 2009
NEW ORLEANS - Three University of Cincinnati track and field athletes, freshmen Michelle Eby (Dayton, Ohio/Wayne) and Mackenzie Fields (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mariemont), and sophomore Lilian Jelimo (Kapsabet, Kenya/Kapsabet Girls), were among a record total of 531 student-athletes representing 146 Division I institutions that composed the United States Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Women's 2009 All-Academic team, the organization announced today.
In her first year at UC, Eby finished fifth at the BIG EAST Outdoor Championships in the pole vault with a season-best mark of 12' 7-1/2", surpassing the regional qualifying standard. During the indoor campaign, Eby recorded the top UC finish in the pole vault (3rd) at the BIG EAST Indoor Track and Field Championships clearing a height of 12' 7-1/2". Eby is a pre-pharmacy major with a 3.924 GPA.
Also in her rookie season with UC, Fields finished second in the pole vault at the BIG EAST Outdoor Championships with a personal-best mark of 12' 11-1/2", before finishing 23rd at NCAA Mid-East Regional with a clearance of 12' 6". Her mark of 12' 11-1/2" was the top mark for all UC pole vaulters this season. Additionally, Fields placed sixth at the BIG EAST Indoor Championships with a mark of 12' 3-1/2". Fields is majoring in engineering and owns a 4.0 GPA.
Jelimo was one of the top distance runners for the UC women's program this season, specializing in the 3,000 steeplechase. At the BIG EAST Outdoor Championships, not only did Jelimo place fourth in the 3,000 steeplechase with a time of 10:31.54, but she set the UC record in that event breaking her own record of 10:37.87 set at the All-Ohio Championships earlier in the season. Jelimo advanced to the NCAA Mid-East Regional courtesy of her time at the BIG EAST Championships and crossed the line in 10th-place in the 3,000 steeplechase with a time of 10:48.35. Jelimo owns a 3.450 GPA in pre-nursing.
To qualify for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Track and Field Team, the student-athlete must have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 and have met either the NCAA Division I Indoor automatic or provisional qualifying standard or the NCAA Division I Outdoor regional or national qualifying standard in their respective event.