COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Five University of Colorado Colorado Springs student-athletes from the men's and women's cross country programs were voted to the 2024 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference All-Academic First Team, while 28 more Mountain Lions earned Honor Roll recognition. Receiving first team honors from the women's cross country program are
Anna Fauske,
Kaya Pillivant and
Rachel Richtman, as
Brett Davis and
Jagger Zlotoff represent the men's program.
Colorado Christian University senior Shannon King and Colorado School of Mines graduate student Loic Scomparin have been named the RMAC Academic Athletes of the Year. Presented by Barnes & Noble College, 14 First Team RMAC All-Academic women's cross country selections and 14 men's cross country selections were made, as selected by the league's cross country athletic communications directors and presented on Thursday.
The RMAC Academic Honor Roll recognizes student-athletes in each conference-sponsored sport who academically maintain at least a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average, have completed two consecutive semesters at their current institution, and have used a season of competition. Each institution's athletic communications directors nominate student-athletes who academically maintain at least a 3.50 cumulative grade point average, along with the other criteria for the Academic Honor Roll, for recognition on the First Team Academic All-RMAC in each sport. The league's athletic communications directors for that sport vote to compose the First Team Academic All-RMAC and select the Academic Player of the Year. They are not permitted to vote for their own student-athletes.
A senior from Sherwood, Wis.,
Anna Fauske (3.62 GPA, Nursing) ran to her third career USTFCCCA Cross Country All-America award, finishing ninth overall at the NCAA DII Championship meet with a time of 20:43.8. A runner-up at the NCAA South Central Regional championship, Fauske earned another top-five finish when she crossed the finish line in third place with a personal best 6k time of 19:39.7 at the RMAC Championship meet. A three-time All-RMAC First Team and USTFCCCA All-Region performer, Fauske is making her third appearance on the RMAC All-Academic Women's Cross Country First Team.
Kaya Pillivant is earning her first RMAC All-Academic First Team accolade after earning a 3.89 GPA in Math. The redshirt sophomore from Cheyenne, Wyo. was consistently one of the Mountain Lions top runners this season. Afte posting a personal best 6k time of 21:25.8 at the RMAC Championship meet (28
th place), Pillivant recorded a 27th place finish two weeks later at the regional meet in Denver, Colo. Running in her first national championship meet for the Mountain Lions, Pillivant notched a 62
nd place finish with a time of 21:46.3.
A three-time RMAC All-Academic women's cross country honor roll student, redshirt-senior
Rachel Richtman is collecting her first RMAC All-Academic First Team nod. A 4.00 GPA student majoring in Spanish, the Elburn, Ill. native posted a 34
th place finish at the conference championship meet, followed by a 36
th finish at regional championship. She closed out her fifth year running cross country for the Mountain Lions with a 90
th place finish at the NCAA Division II championships, clocking a time of 22:04.9.
From Thornton, Colo.,
Brett Davis had a solid sophomore campaign for the Mountain Lions. A Mechanical Engineering major with a 3.68 GPA, Davis started the post-season with an 8k personal best time of 24:33.8, finishing 12
th at the conference championship meet. After securing his All-RMAC First Team accolade, he placed 42
nd at the South Central Regional before clocking a new 10k PR time of 31:21.5 at the national championship meet in Sacramento, Calif.
Jagger Zlotoff was the first Mountain Lion to cross the finish line in four meets this season. The redshirt-junior is making his second appearance on the all-academic first team. The computer science major with a 3.50 GPA, Zlotoff started the season winning the UCCS Rust Buster to earn RMAC Men's Runner of the Week and USTFCCCA Division II Men's Athlete of the Week distinction. A 2023 CSC Academic All-District selection, Zlotoff finished fifth at the RMAC championships with a PR time of 24:10.4, before notching a 22
nd place finish at the regional championship and an 82
nd place finish at the Division II championship meet.
The Mountain Lions women's cross country team wrapped up the 2024 season with a seventh place finish at the NCAA championships behind 266 points, while the men's team garnered 435 points to post a 15
th team finish.
2024 UCCS Women's Cross Country Honor Roll
| NAME |
YR. |
MAJOR |
GPA |
HOMETOWN |
| Abby Bartel |
R-So. |
Nursing |
3.80 |
Fremont, Wis. |
| Molly Breuer |
R-Jr. |
Nursing |
3.85 |
Boerne, Texas |
| Madison Brosig |
R-Fr. |
Exercise Science |
3.63 |
Greeley, Colo. |
| Audrey Brunken |
R-So. |
Exercise Science |
3.42 |
Moreno Valley, Calif. |
| Madison Chavez |
R-So. |
Mechanical Engineering |
3.99 |
San Ramon, Calif. |
| Kaley Fergus |
R-Fr. |
Exercise Science |
3.56 |
Gig Harbor, Wash. |
| Emma Finchum |
R-Jr. |
Mechanical Engineering |
3.33 |
Gilbert, Ariz. |
| Rachel Goodrich |
R-Sr. |
Criminal Justice |
3.97 |
Golden, Colo. |
| Mason Ingallinera |
R-Sr. |
Exercise Science |
3.61 |
Bradenton, Fla. |
| Emma Montoya |
So. |
Exercise Science |
3.91 |
Los Alamos, N.M. |
| Brooke Moss |
R-Jr. |
Exercise Science |
3.48 |
Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| Maddie Ruszkiewicz |
R-So. |
Geography & Environmental Studies |
3.43 |
Middleton, Wis. |
| Olivia Sargent |
R-Fr. |
Nutrition & Dietetics |
3.53 |
Monument, Colo. |
2024 UCCS Men's Cross Country Honor Roll
| NAME |
YR. |
MAJOR |
GPA |
HOMETOWN |
| Kyle Briggs |
R-Fr. |
Mechanical Engineering |
3.90 |
Eugene, Oregon |
| Michael Burke Jr. |
R-So. |
Exercise Science |
3.33 |
Pompton Lakes, N.J. |
| Tyler Campbell |
R-Fr. |
Mechanical Engineering |
3.94 |
Gig Harbor, Wash. |
| Koy Cunningham |
R-So. |
Exercise Science |
3.71 |
Monument, Colo. |
| Jack Donze |
R-Jr. |
Mechanical Engineering |
3.84 |
Arvada, Colo. |
| Joseph Hamilton |
R-Jr. |
Biochemistry |
3.99 |
Mesa, Ariz. |
| Peter Harrison |
R-So. |
Geography & Environmental Studies |
3.48 |
Naperville, Ill. |
| Joseph Impellitteri |
R-So. |
Communication Studies |
3.63 |
Hebron, Ky. |
| Tyler Jamieson |
R-Fr. |
Mechanical Engineering |
3.40 |
Santa Barbara, Calif. |
| Will Lamb |
R-Jr. |
Philosophy |
3.38 |
Beaver, Pa. |
| Caden Leal |
R-So. |
Exercise Science |
3.44 |
Loveland, Colo. |
| Pablo Lomeli |
R-Jr. |
Exercise Science |
3.72 |
Round Rock, Texas |
| Nick Pascarella |
R-Jr. |
History |
3.35 |
Pittsburgh, Pa. |
| TJ Saglembeni |
R-So. |
Accounting |
3.73 |
Monument, Colo. |
| Turner Schad |
R-So. |
Human Physiology/Nutrition |
3.84 |
Sauk Rapids, Minn. |
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
