From Washington University Athletics
Four men and two women earned College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Track and Field/Cross Country Academic All-District honors, the organization recently announced.
On the women's side, Julia Dannenbaum and Eka Jose were honored, while Alex Cobin, Michael Ly, John Harry Wagner and Andrew Whitaker were honored on the men's side. All six earned a spot on the District 5 team, which is made up of schools from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
For the 2020-21 year, nominations were based on career statistics.
Women
Dannenbaum recently graduate with a degree in Anthropology: Global Health and the Environment. During her time on the track and field team at WashU, she competed in the pole vault. Dannenbaum is a three-time All-American, notching two All-America honors for indoor track and field and one for outdoor track and field, all in 2019. Her sixth-place finish in the pole vault at the 2019 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field National Championships gave her the first All-America honor of her career and helped the Bears to a runner-up finish. That same year, she ended the season with a third-place finish at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field National Championships.
Jose recently graduated with degrees in Biology and Global Health and the Environment. During her time at WashU, Jose won two national championships, both in 2019. At the 2019 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field National Championships, Jose recorded a leap of 12.16m to win her first-ever national title in the triple jump. Following the title, Jose was named the USTFCCCA Women's Division III Indoor Field Athlete of the Year. She followed that up with another national title in the triple jump at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field National Championships. For her performance, Jose was named the USTFCCCA Most Outstanding Women's Field Performer at the outdoor championships. Jose was also named the 2019 USTFCCCA NCAA Division III Track and Field Indoor Scholar Athlete of the Year. This season, Jose earned All-America honors in the triple jump which marked the sixth of career.
Men
Cobin is a junior majoring in Finance and Economics and Strategy who competes for both the cross country and track and field teams as WashU. Cobin is now a two-time All-American for track and field. He earned the first All-America honor of his career in 2019, as he and his distance medley relay team placed third at the NCAA Division III Track and Field Indoor National Championships. He added another All-America honor to his name in 2021 in the 800-meter run after finishing in seventh place with a time of 1:54.24. During the 2021 season, Cobin clocked the program's third fast time in the 800-meter with a mark of 1:51.32.
Ly is a junior Neuroscience major who is a member of both the cross country and track and field teams. During his time at WashU, he is a five-time All-UAA Academic honoree, earning the award twice for cross country, twice for outdoor track and field, and one for indoor track and field. During the 2021 season, Ly qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships for the first time, running the 3,000-meter steeplechase. He ultimately ended up finishing tenth with a time of 9:22.10. Additionally, Ly earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors in that event.
Wagner recently graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering. During his time at WashU, Wagner ran mid-distance for the Bears. In 2019, Wagner was part of the 4x400 relay team that won the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field national title with a time of 3:09.77. He is a four-time NCAA Division III Indoor All-American, picking up his first honor in 2018. He is also a two-time NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field All-American, notching his second-career honor in 2021 as part of the seventh-place 4x400 relay team. Additionally, Wagner is a two-time UAA Indoor Track and Field Champion in the distance medley relay and 4x400 relay, as well as a three-time UAA outdoor champion in the 4x800 relay and the 4x400 relay. Wagner was a First Team CoSIDA Academic All-American for the 2019-20 academic year.
Whitaker recently graduated with a degree in Biomedical Engineering and was also recently named a CoSIDA Academic All-American for football. During his time on the track for WashU, Whitaker was part of the 4x400 relay team that won the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field national title. Most recently, Whitaker picked up two more career All-America honors, placing fourth in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2021 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships and was also part of the seventh-place 4x400 relay team. Whitaker is a three-time NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field All-American in the 4x400 relay and the 110-meter hurdles. He is also a two-time UAA Indoor champion in the 60-meter hurdles and 4x400 relay, as well as a four-time UAA outdoor champion in the 400-meter hurdles, 4x400 relay and 110-meter hurdles.
All six track and field/cross country athletes now move onto the national ballot, with winners to be announced in August.