AUSTIN, Texas - College of Idaho distance runner
Molly Vitale-Sullivan was honored today as a first-team selection to the CoSIDA NAIA Track and Field/Cross Country Academic All-America Team, announced today by the College Sports Information Directors of America.
Vitale-Sullivan earns the honor for the second-straight year after receiving second-team accolades in 2019. She joins
Hillary Holt as the only two-time recipients from the Coyote women's cross country/track program.
To be honored, a student-athlete must be nominated by their school's sports information director – with the athlete at least a sophomore in academic standing, maintaining a minimum 3.30 cumulative grade point average and be a starter or key contributor to the team. Athletes must first be selected to one of four 10-athlete All-District team (C of I is a part of District 4 - comprised of all NAIA schools in the Cascade, California Pacific, Golden State, Frontier, Sooner Athletic and Red River Conferences) – with the 40 finalists comprising the Academic All-America ballot. A final vote among CoSIDA members determines the Academic All-America teams.
Vitale-Sullivan earned All-America honors in both cross country and indoor track during the shortened 2019-20 season - helping the C of I women to a second-place finish at the NAIA Cross Country Championships, with the Yotes winning the combined team national title. The math/physics major from Pocatello is a 10-time NAIA All-American, a 6-time Cascade Conference All-Academic Team selection and was recently honored as C of I's Senior Women's Athlete of the Year.
Three members of the team maintained a 4.00 cumulative grade point average, while the average GPA of the first-team was 3.96.
CoSIDA NAIA Track and Field/Cross Country Academic All-America Team: Ariana Anderson (Embry-Riddle), Rachel Battershell (Concordia-Nebraska), Taylor Bluemel (Taylor), Bailey Cossentine (William Jessup), Danielle De Castro (Oregon Tech), Kate Grint (Doane), Kelli Smith (Cornerstone),
Molly Vitale-Sullivan (College of Idaho), Vendela Williams (William Jessup)
