AUSTIN, Texas - The Washington University in St. Louis women's track and field and cross country teams headlined the College Sports Communicators (CSC) 2023 Academic All-America list. As announced by CSC on Wednesday, June 28, the Bears tied Johns Hopkins University for the most Academic All-America selections in Division III with four. After winning back-to-back national titles in the 800m, junior
Emma Kelley landed on the Academic All-America First Team. Senior
Aoife Dunne and junior
Ally Sarussi were selected to the Second Team, while junior
Kathryn Leighty earned a spot on the Third Team.
The four Academic All-America selections for one program is tied for the second most in WashU history. The 2016-17 women's track and field and cross country program generated five Academic All-Americans.
With four more athletes landing on the Academic All-America list, WashU has now produced 214 Academic All-Americans, with 43 hailing from the women's track and field and cross country teams. The complete list of WashU Academic All-Americans can be found
here.
Across all divisions, WashU ranks eighth in total Academic All-America honorees and owns the third most selections in Division III behind Massachusetts Institue of Technology (MIT) and Johns Hopkins.
After a historic 2022-23 campaign by winning the 800m indoor and outdoor NCAA National Championships, Kelley adds another impressive accolade to her resume by registering her first-career Academic All-America award. The St. Louis, Mo. native, who is majoring in psychological & brain sciences, owns a 3.88 GPA. In the NCAA Indoor Championships, Kelley welcomed a personal-best 800m mark to best all of Division III as she crossed the finish line with a time of 2:06.62. The story was no different in the 800m outdoor championships as Kelley cruised to her second title of the year with a time of 2:06.47. Additionally, Kelley warranted All-American status in the 4x400m relay at both the indoor and outdoor championships.
In the University Athletic Association (UAA) Indoor Championships, Kelley won a pair of events (one individual and one relay). The junior claimed the 400m dash crown with a time of 56.27, en route to setting a new UAA record. Additionally, Kelley anchored the winning 1,600m relay team with a mark of 3:52.74. She was also a part of the distance medley relay team that took home second as the team turned in a time of 11:41.35.
Kelley welcomed three event victories (one individual and two relay) in UAA Outdoor Championships. She took home the 400m title (56.11) and was part of the winning 1,600m relay (3:51.65) and the 3,200m relay (9:04.64).
Also for the first time in her career, Dunne landed on the Academic All-America Second Team. Dunne, a senior from Pittsburgh, Pa., has generated a 3.69 GPA in international & area studies. Dunne anchored the 2023 NCAA Indoor Champion distance medley relay team that secured the title with a time of 11:35.09. The senior also finished second in the indoor 800m NCAA Championship as she generated a mark of 2:08.65.
Dunne registered Indoor All-American honors in the 800m and the distance medley relay along with Outdoor All-American honors in the 800m and the 1,500m.
In the UAA Indoor Championships, Dunne secured the 800m victory as she bested the league with a time of 2:14.03. Additionally, she claimed a runner-up finish in the mile run (4:56.40). Dunne followed up her UAA indoor performance with a win at the UAA Outdoor Championships in the 800m (2:11.72) and a runner-up finish in the 1,500m (4:31.10).
Sarussi, a junior from La Grange, Ill., owns a 4.00 GPA in anthropology. Sarussi claimed a national championship title in the indoor season as she was the third leg in the winning distance medley relay team that notched a time of 11:35.09. The national champion welcomed Indoor All-American honors in the distance medley relay and Outdoor All-American honors in the 800m.
Sarussi was a part of the indoor 1,600m relay team that won the UAA title with a time of 3:52.74. Sarussi finished sixth in the UAA 800m run (2:18.81). In the outdoor UAA Championships, she claimed fourth in the 800m (2:11.97).
Leighty, a junior from Edina, Minn., garnered her first career Academic All-America selection. Leighty sports a 4.00 GPA and is majoring in biology. In the 2023 NCAA Indoor Championships, Leighty was the second leg in the national championship distance medley relay team that posted a time of 11:35.09.
The Bears are set to return to action Friday, Sept. 1 at the Greenville Dual for the program's 2023 cross country opener. Action is set for 7:30 a.m. at Forest Park.
