Eight Islanders Claim Southland Conference All-Academic Honors

CORPUS CHRISTI – The Texas A&M - Corpus Christi men's and women's cross country and track and field teams placed a total of eight student-athletes on the Southland Conference All-Academic Cross Country and Track & Field teams, the league announced today. Four student-athletes from the women's team and four student-athletes from the men's team garnered a spot on the teams.

"We're extremely proud of these eight individuals for their athletic and academic achievements and they are indicative of the academic achievement of the entire team," head coach Shawn Flanagan said. "Academic achievement is just as important as athletic achievement in our program and their performances reflect upon that philosophy and it's a credit to them all."

The Islanders' eight honorees matched Stephen F. Austin for the third highest in the conference. Abilene Christian led all teams with 10 while Sam Houston State placed nine on the all-academic teams.

For the men's team, Philipp Baar earned his third career all-academic accolade while Valentinas Rudys claimed his second career honor. Jackson Davis and Edgar Martinez also earned a spot, picking up their first all-academic accolade. For the women's team, Jasmine McCoy, Shanice Prendergast, Kerissa Wiley and Melina Ortiz all garnered a spot on the women's all-academic team for the first time in their careers.

Baar, who earned an automatic selection, put together an outstanding senior season for the men's cross country team and achieved a 3.69 GPA in Management. He finished in the top five of every race except for the NCAA South Central Regional. The native of Schwerin, Germany clinched first place at the Islanders Splash with a time of 25:14.9 in the 8k, and a third-place finish at the Texas A&M Invite and at the Southland Conference Championships. Baar clocked a time of 30:21.3 to place 20th in the 10k at the South Central Regional Cross Country Meet and earned all-region honors. This season, he was named the Islanders Cross Country MVP and the Islanders Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Rudys earned a 3.72 GPA in Business and Management, and had a stellar year for both the cross country and track teams. During the cross country season he clocked a season-best time of 25:50.8 in the 8k at the Incarnate Word Invite, before putting together a remarkable indoor track season.

Rudys was part of the distance medley relay team that placed first at the Houston Indoor Opener and at the Howie Ryan Invite, and a third-place finish at the conference indoor championships. In the 800 meters, he posted a third-place finish at the Texas A&M Invite and at the Southland Conference Indoor Championships. He earned Southland Conference third-team honors in the DMR and the 800 meters for his indoor performances. His time of 1:51.82 in the 800 meters at the conference championships marked a personal-best and school-record time for the senior.

During the outdoor season, Rudys claimed a pair of first-place finishes in the 800 meters at the Islander Dash Invite and the Islander Open. He also earned the Islanders Indoor Track and Field MVP award.

In his second season with the cross country, and indoor and outdoor teams, Martinez achieved a 3.82 GPA in Biomedical Sciences, and clocked three top-10 finishes during the cross country season. In the first meet of the season, he picked up a first-place finish at the Rio Grande Valley Classic, before recording a third-place finish at the Incarnate Word Invite. During the outdoor season, he finished first in the 7,000 meters with a time of 22:09.11 and placed fourth in the 1,500 meters at the Islander Dash Invite. He was named the Islanders Cross Country Most Improved Runner.

The fourth honoree is Davis who helped the distance medley relay team to three top-three finishes during the indoor season while earning a 3.82 GPA in Mechanical Engineering. The Richmond, Texas native led the Islanders to a first-place finish at the Howie Ryan Invite and a third-place finish at the Southland Conference Indoor Championships to earn Southland Conference third-team honors.

During the outdoor season, Davis posted four top-10 finishes in the 400-meter hurdles, with his best finish coming at the UTSA Invite with a second-place finish. He also clocked a personal-best time of 52.72 in the 400-meter hurdles at the Southland Conference Outdoor Championships to finish sixth.

Leading the four honorees for the women's team is Wiley who earned a pair of third-place finishes at the Southland Conference Indoor and Outdoor Championships. Wiley, achieved a 3.48 GPA in Communication and earned third team all-conference honors this season after delivering a third-place finish in the high jump at the Southland Conference Outdoor Championships. She cleared 1.70 meters on her first attempt at that height to earn eight points for her team with the performance.

The Elmaton, Texas native also claimed third team all-conference honors this season in the high jump during the indoor season after placing third at the Southland Conference Indoor Championships. Also during the indoor season she placed third in the high jump at the Houston Opener and Texas A&M Invite. During the outdoor season, she earned first place in the high jump at the UTSA Invite and the Islander Dash Invite. She earned the Islanders Indoor Team MVP award.

Prendergast led the sprints with a 3.96 GPA in Criminal Justice, while clocking three top-10 finishes in the 800 meters during the outdoor season. She ran a personal-best time of 2:15.98 at the Michael Johnson Classic. Her best finish of the outdoor season came at the Islander Open Spring Break Meet in the 400 meters with a third-place finish. Prendergast placed 10th in the 800 meters at the Southland Conference Indoor Championships with a season-best time of 2:18.63.

McCoy, who achieved a 3.59 GPA in Biomedical Sciences put together a strong outdoor season. She finished in the top 10 of the 800 meters with a time of 2:22.61 at the Southland Conference Outdoor Championships. The senior clocked a season-best time of 2:12.38 in the 800 meters during the outdoor season at the Rice Twilight. Prior to that, she ran a season-best time of 2:18.75 in the 800 meters at the Texas A&M Invitational during the indoor season. During the cross country season, the native of Long Branch, N.J., clocked a season-best time of 19:12.7 in the 5k at the Islanders Splash.

Ortiz achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA in Biomedical Sciences while competing for the indoor and outdoor teams. She ran a season-best time of 26.68 in the 200 meters and a 1:06.44 in the 400 meters. Her season-best time in the 400 meters earned a 10th-place finish at the UTSA Invitational during the outdoor season.

In order to be eligible for the all-academic team, each nominee must have earned at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA on a 4.0 scale through the semester prior to the sports' championship season, completed at least one full academic year at his or her institution prior to this season and participated in at least 50 percent of the school's meets.

For the latest information, follow the teams on Twitter and Instagram (@IslandersTFXC) and Facebook (Texas A&M Corpus Christi Track & Field/Cross Country). Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the Islanders Front Row App at GoIslanders.com/frontrow.

2015 Men's Cross Country and Track and Field All-Academic Team

^2015 Outdoor Track & Field Student-Athlete of the Year

¹Automatic Selection

²Two-time all-academic selection

³Three-time all-academic selection

^#Capital One Academic All-District

2015 Women's Cross Country and Track and Field All-Academic Team

^2015 Outdoor Track & Field Student-Athlete of the Year

¹Automatic Selection

²Two-time all-academic selection

³Three-time all-academic selection

^#Capital One Academic All-District