Air Force Pair Earn Academic All-District Honors
5/29/2020 1:51:00 PM | Track and Field
It is the first such academic award for both Blanks and Lipe.
USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – Two members of the Air Force track and field team – Lindsey Blanks and Mitch Lipe – were named to the Academic All-District VII Track/Field and Cross Country Team, the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) announced today (May 29). With first-team distinction at the district level, the pair will be placed on the national ballot for Academic All-America honors.
Blanks, a recently commissioned second lieutenant who finished the nomination period with a 3.90 GPA and graduated last month with a degree in operations research, is the Academy record holder in the 2000- and 3000-meter steeplechase events. A two-time all-conference selection as a senior (2019 cross country, 2020 distance medley relay), she was the No. 3 runner on the cross country team that capped a historic 2019 season with an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Blanks, who qualified to the NCAA meet in the steeplechase as a junior, is one of only two Air Force women to make multiple trips to the NCAA Cross Country Championships at the Division I level, after finishing as the No. 5 runner on the squad that made the women's first-ever team appearance at the national championships in 2016.
Lipe, a rising senior and the 2020 Mountain West Indoor champion in the pole vault, maintained a 3.67 GPA in aeronautical engineering. A five-time medalist and all-conference selection in his signature event, he debuted in ninth on the Academy's all-time indoor standings this winter after recording a career-best clearance of 17'6½" (5.35m) at the Air Force Invitational. Lipe, a four-time Mountain West Athlete of the Week honoree, finished first in three meets during the 2020 indoor season, bringing his career win total to seven – with four additional placements as the top collegiate finisher.
To be nominated for CoSIDA Academic All-District honors, a student-athlete must have completed at least one full academic year at the institution, be a significant contributor and carry a cumulative grade-point-average of 3.30 or higher. The academic awards for District VII are voted on by CoSIDA members from DI programs in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming.
With the addition of Blanks and Lipe, track and field has seen 22 different Falcons combine for 28 total academic all-district honors from CoSIDA since the program began in 2002 – and has had at least one selection to the Academic All-District VII Track/Field and Cross Country Team during 14 of the last 15 years.
Blanks, a recently commissioned second lieutenant who finished the nomination period with a 3.90 GPA and graduated last month with a degree in operations research, is the Academy record holder in the 2000- and 3000-meter steeplechase events. A two-time all-conference selection as a senior (2019 cross country, 2020 distance medley relay), she was the No. 3 runner on the cross country team that capped a historic 2019 season with an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Blanks, who qualified to the NCAA meet in the steeplechase as a junior, is one of only two Air Force women to make multiple trips to the NCAA Cross Country Championships at the Division I level, after finishing as the No. 5 runner on the squad that made the women's first-ever team appearance at the national championships in 2016.
Lipe, a rising senior and the 2020 Mountain West Indoor champion in the pole vault, maintained a 3.67 GPA in aeronautical engineering. A five-time medalist and all-conference selection in his signature event, he debuted in ninth on the Academy's all-time indoor standings this winter after recording a career-best clearance of 17'6½" (5.35m) at the Air Force Invitational. Lipe, a four-time Mountain West Athlete of the Week honoree, finished first in three meets during the 2020 indoor season, bringing his career win total to seven – with four additional placements as the top collegiate finisher.
To be nominated for CoSIDA Academic All-District honors, a student-athlete must have completed at least one full academic year at the institution, be a significant contributor and carry a cumulative grade-point-average of 3.30 or higher. The academic awards for District VII are voted on by CoSIDA members from DI programs in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming.
With the addition of Blanks and Lipe, track and field has seen 22 different Falcons combine for 28 total academic all-district honors from CoSIDA since the program began in 2002 – and has had at least one selection to the Academic All-District VII Track/Field and Cross Country Team during 14 of the last 15 years.
Players Mentioned
1500m / 3000m Steeplechase
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