March 26, 2001
Trio of Calvin women's cross country harriers named to Verizon Academic
All-District IV teams
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - A trio of Calvin women's cross country harriers have received
Verizon Academic All-District IV honors in the fall/winter at-large college
division. Named to the Verizon Academic All-District IV first team from Calvin
are senior Sarah Gritter and junior Erinn Boot while senior Rashel Workman has
been named to the second team. As members of the first team, Gritter and Boot
both advance to the national ballot and are eligible for All-America honors.
The college division of the Verizon Academic All-America program includes NCAA
II, NCAA III and NAIA schools. The Verizon Academic All-District and
All-America teams are selected by the College Sports Information Director's
Association of America (CoSIDA). To be eligible for nomination, a player must
be a starter or a key reserve with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.20. The
women's fall/winter division includes the sports of cross country, gymnastics,
skiing, fencing, ice hockey, soccer, water polo, rifle and swimming and diving.
Gritter is making her third straight appearance on the Academic All-District IV
first team while Boot is being so honored for the first time after earning
second team All-District IV honors a year ago. Workman is receiving
All-District IV second team accolades for the first time in her career.
Gritter is from Wauwatosa, Wisconsin where she prepped at Racine Lutheran High
School. A nine-time member of the Calvin Dean's List, Gritter was graduated
from Calvin this past December with a major of mathematics and a minor of
computer science. While at Calvin, Gritter carried a 3.93 grade point average
and was a four-time member of the MIAA Academic Honor Roll and a four-time
recipient of the Division III College Cross Country Coaches Association
All-Academic award.
A three-time All-American in track and field, Gritter helped lead the Calvin
women's cross country team to its 13th consecutive MIAA and Great Lakes Regional
title. At the MIAA Championships October 28, Gritter took first place with a
time of 18:27, en route to earning MIAA MVP honors while also earning a spot on
the All-MIAA first team. At the Great Lakes Regional meet, she finished second
and earned a spot on the Great Lakes All-Region team for the third time. At the
NCAA III Championships, she finished 130th, helping the Knights finish 14th as a
team. The finish marked Gritter's fourth appearance at the national meet as she
was also a key member of Calvin's national championship teams in 1998 and 1999.
Boot is from Kalamazoo and is a graduate of Kalamazoo Christian High School. A
second team academic all-district IV selection last year, Boot carries a 3.88
grade point average as a pre-medicine major. Boot is a five-time member of the
Calvin Dean's List, a three-time recipient of the College Cross Country Coaches
Association All-Academic award and a two-time member of the MIAA Academic Honor
Roll.
A two-time first team All-MIAA and Great Lakes All-Region selection, Boot took
second at the MIAA Championships this fall with a time of 18:36. Her finish
helped the Knights record a first place team score of 16 points which was the
second best team score in MIAA women's cross country history. Boot then took
sixth at the Great Lakes Regional to help the Knights post a first place team
score of 41 points. At the NCAA III Championships November 18, she was top
individual finisher for the Knights, placing 61st with a time of 19:04. Boot
was also a member of Calvin's 1998 and 1999 national championship teams, serving
as the team's first alternate at the 1998 national meet and then finishing 50th
at the 1999 NCAA III Championships as she served as Calvin's all-important fifth
runner.
Workman is a native of Sparta and a graduate of Sparta High School. A political
science major with a minor in psychology, Workman carries a 3.83 grade point
average. Workman is a seven-time member of the Calvin Dean's List, a four-time
recipient of the College Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic award
and a three-time member of the MIAA Academic Honor Roll.
This past fall, Workman earned first team All-MIAA honors for the third time and
Great Lakes All-Region accolades for the fourth straight year. At the MIAA
Championships, she placed third individually with a time of 18:40 and followed
with a ninth place time of 19:06 at the Great Lakes Regional. At the NCAA III
Championships the following week, she was Calvin's second-highest finisher,
placing 96th individually with a time of 19:20. Also a member of Calvin's 1998
and 1999 national championship teams, Workman was a member of Calvin's top-seven
throughout her collegiate career and participated at four consecutive NCAA III
National Championship meets. At the 1997 NCAA's, Workman finished 87th and then
finished 67th at the 1998 NCAA's and 97th at the 1999 NCAA's.
Gritter, Boot and Workman were part of five individuals from the MIAA to receive
Verizon Academic All-District IV honors in the women's at-large division as
Lydia Rayburn (soccer) of Kalamazoo was selected to the first team and Liz
Hermiller (soccer) of Albion was named to the second team.
-end-
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