USTFCCCA All-Academic Team and Athlete Awards

RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced on Monday that The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s (UTRGV) men’s and women’s track & field teams were named 2024 All-Academic Teams while four student-athletes, Aaron Cooper and Jedidiah Udunna of the men’s team and Zoë Adams and Hannah Hilding of the women’s team, achieved All-Academic Athlete status.

To be eligible for All-Academic Team recognition, the cumulative grade point average (GPA) for all on members of the team must be 3.0 or better. UTRGV’s women’s team owns a cumulative GPA of 3.26 while the men’s team holds a 3.13 cumulative GPA.

To qualify for All-Academic Athlete status, student-athletes must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.25 or better, completed two semesters at the nominating institution, and met the athletic criteria by either finishing the indoor season ranked in the top 96 in an individual event or top 48 in a relay or by participating in any round of the NCAA Div. I Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

Cooper and Udunna, both sophomores, qualified for the NCAA West Preliminary. Cooper, a marketing major, finished 30^th in the men’s triple jump at his first West preliminary and Udunna was 34^th in long jump in his second trip to the first round of the NCAA Championships. Udunna was the 2024 Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Outdoor Championship in long jump and Cooper took silver in triple jump at the conference meet.

This is Udunna’s second consecutive season earning USTFCCCA All-Academic Athlete honors. He also made the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. He is pursuing a degree in business marketing and management.

Adams, a junior, is studying biology with a minor in biochemistry. In her first season with UTRGV, she qualified for the NCAA West Preliminary in the women’s 400-meter dash and finished 43^rd. She claimed bronze in the event at the WAC Outdoor Championships.

Hilding, a sophomore studying business administration and management, was also named to the CSC Academic All-District Team. The 2024 WAC Outdoor Championships Outstanding Field Performer qualified for her first NCAA West Preliminary in the women’s hammer throw and finished 32^nd. She was the silver medalist at the conference meet in the event and also picked up bronze medals in the shot put and discus while finishing fourth in javelin.