Washington U. Lands 11 Women, Five Men on UAA 25th Anniversary Cross Country Teams

Rochester, N.Y., October 19, 2012 – Sixteen former student-athletes from Washington University in St. Louis, including 11 women and four men, were among the 78 runners honored on the University Athletic Association (UAA) All-Association 25th Anniversary Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Teams, announced by the Association in honor of its silver anniversary.

The 25-Year Teams consist of each student-athlete who finished as Individual Champion or accumulated at least five points with two points awarded for All-Association first-team recognition and one point for second-team honors in his or her career.

The Washington University women had an Association-best 11 runners named to the 25th Anniversary Team, including repeat Individual Champion honorees Emily Richard (1996-97), Maggie Grabow (2003-04), Beth Herndon (2005-06), and Taryn Surtees (2008-09). Herndon and Richard were also among four honorees who earned first-team All-UAA recognition in four consecutive years.

In addition to the four runners who won back-to-back UAA individual titles, Washington U. boasts seven other student-athletes on the 25th Anniversary Women’s Cross Country Team, including 2012 NCAA Woman of the Year Elizabeth Phillips and 2011 UAA medalist Erica Jackey. Jerilyn Jordan and Tyler Mulkin were named to the first team three times, while Susan Chou and Julie Hoover garnered two first-team and one second-team honors. Karen Sorensen won the individual title at the 1989 UAA Cross Country Championships.

Five former Washington U. men’s runners were selected to the 25th Anniversary Men’s Cross Country Team, including repeat Cross Country Individual Champion honorees Tim Julien (1998-99) and Michael Burnstein (2010-11). Brennan Bonner, meanwhile, ran to first-team honors in three consecutive seasons. Matt Hoelle also represented Washington University on the 25th Anniversary Men’s Cross Country Team after earning first-team honors in 2000, 2002 and 2003 and second-team honors in 2001. Pat MacDonald was the Bears' fifth member of the 25th Anniversary Team, after earning second-team honors in 1999 and first-team recognition in 2000 and 2001.

In 25 years, 25 men’s teams and 17 women’s teams from the UAA have finished in the top-10 at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships. Washington U. became the first UAA team to capture the women’s national title in 2011. The Bears finished third or fourth in five different years between 2002-07 and were the national runners-up in 2010. The Washington University men placed a program-best third in 2011 for their third consecutive top-10 finish.