Thursday, May 26, 2022

PORTLAND, Ore. – A Division II all-time record holder and national champion and four conference champions lead an impressive six GNAC student-athletes named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Division II Academic All-District 8 Women’s Track and Field/Cross Country Team.

Simon Fraser’s Alison Andrews-Paul, the Division II record holder in the outdoor 800 meters and national champion in the event indoors, leads the list. She is joined by conference champions Aliyah Dawkins of Western Washington, Annika Esvelt of Seattle Pacific and Jenelle Hurley of Western Oregon. Rounding out the selections is Simon Fraser’s Emily Chilton and Western Washington’s Amanda Short.

Andrews-Paul, a graduate student academically, has a 3.90 GPA in Simon Fraser’s public health program. The Division II champion in the indoor 800 meters, she enters this week’s Division II Outdoor Championships as the division’s all-time record holder in the event. Her record-setting time of 2:01.43 ranks 40th in the world this season.

Andrews-Paul won GNAC indoor championships in the 800 meters and as part of SFU’s 4x400-meter and distance medley relay teams. She went on to win outdoor titles in the 800 meters and 1,500 meters and as part of SFU’s 4x400-meter relay team. During the cross country season, Andrews-Paul helped SFU win the GNAC and West Region titles and earned All-GNAC honors with a seventh-place finish at the GNAC Championships.

Dawkins, a senior academically with a 3.95 GPA as a biochemistry and behavioral neuroscience major, earned her second career Academic All-District selection. She was also a Third Team Academic All-American that season. Dawkins won the GNAC championship indoors in the high jump with a mark of 5 feet, 5.75 inches, and placed second in the pentathlon with a score of 3,340 points. She also placed fifth in the long jump and sixth in the 60-meter hurdles and was named the GNAC Championships Women’s Field Athlete of the Meet.

During the outdoor season, Dawkins placed second in the triple jump, fifth in the long jump and seventh in the high jump.

Esvelt, a sophomore academically with a 4.00 GPA as an applied human biology major, was named the GNAC Indoor Championships Women’s Track Athlete of the Meet after winning the 3,000 meters in 9:50.84 and the 5,000 meters in 17:31.71. She went on to place eighth in the 5,000 meters at the Division II Championships in 16:31.12, earning All-America honors.

During the outdoor season, Esvelt won the GNAC title in the 10,000 meters in 36:32.30 and was second in the 5,000 meters in 17:14.07. Esvelt will compete at the Division II Outdoor Championships in both the 5,000 and 10,000.

Hurley, a junior academically with a 3.97 GPA as a business major, was the GNAC indoor champion in the pentathlon with a score of 3,457 points. She went on to finish second in the long jump and sixth in the high jump. Hurley was named the GNAC Outdoor Championships Women’s Field Athlete of the Meet after winning the long jump with a mark of 19 feet, 5.5 inches, placing second in the heptathlon and 11th in the high jump. Hurley also placed fifth in both the 100-meter and 400-meter hurdles.

Chilton, a senior academically with a 3.95 GPA as a biomedical physiology major, placed sixth in the mile at the GNAC Indoor Championships and was part of the SFU distance medley relay team that placed fourth at the Division II Championships. She went on to place eighth in both the 800 meters and 1,500 meters at the GNAC Outdoor Championships. Chilton opened the year by placing 10th at the GNAC Cross Country Championships, earning all-conference honors, and just missed All-West Region with a 26th-place regionals finish.

Short, a graduate student with a 4.00 GPA in WWU’s kinesiology program, finished second in the javelin at the GNAC Outdoor Championships with a mark of 148 feet, 11 inches. She will compete in the event in this week’s Division II Championships. Short also placed 12th in the shot put at the GNAC Outdoor Championships and was eighth in the event at the GNAC Indoor Championships.

With their selections, the six will be eligible for selection to the CoSIDA Division II Track and Field/Cross Country Academic All-America Team, which will be announced on Tuesday, June 21.

The Academic All-District teams are nominated and voted upon by members of CoSIDA and recognize student-athletes of sophomore standing or higher who are starters or significant reserves for their teams with a minimum GPA of 3.30 or better. Members of the Academic All-District 8 team are selected from athletes from the GNAC, CCAA and PacWest Conference.