2021-22 CoSIDA Academic All-America Teams

AUSTIN, Texas – Colorado School of Mines' Zoe Baker claimed the top academic honor for NCAA Division II Women's Cross Country and Track & Field on Tuesday as the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) voted her the 2022 NCAA DII Women's Cross Country and Track & Field CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year with teammate Hannah Miller joining her on the prestigious squad as well.
 
Both Baker and Miller were voted CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-America. It marked Baker's second straight selection to the top team and third CoSIDA Academic selection overall. Miller earned her second consecutive CoSIDA Academic All-America nod in as many years of eligibility for the accolade. Baker is the fifth individual and second woman to earn the sixth CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year award in Mines' history. Clay Garcia, Mark Husted, Megan Woodworth and Jason Zobott are the other four Orediggers to earn the top honor.
 
Baker and Miller were voted to the CoSIDA Academic All-America teams by sports information directors across the country after earning CoSIDA Academic All-District honors. Criteria required the duo to carry a minimum cumulative grade-point average (GPA) as a sophomore or above with significant contributions to their team in competition. Baker claimed the top honor as the leading vote getter among all Academic All-America nominees across NCAA Division II Women's Cross Country and Track & Field. The Longmong, Colo., native moves on to the ballot for CoSIDA Academic All-America of the Year for all sports which will be selected by a committee and announced on July 19.
 
Tuesday's announcement comes on the tail of Baker's RMAC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year award a week ago which recognized her as the top individual across all sports in the conference for her combined performance in competition and in the classroom. The cornerstone of Baker's numerous academic accolades has been unblemished 4.0 grade-point average (GPA) which has led to the NCAA Elite 90 Award at the 2022 NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships, CoSIDA Academic All-District, USTFCCCA All-Academic for cross country, RMAC Academic Cross Country Runner of the Year, RMAC Academic Indoor Track & Field Athlete of the Year, RMAC Academic Outdoor Track & Field Athlete of the Year, RMAC First-Team All-Academic three times and the RMAC Summit Award for indoor track & field and outdoor track & field. Baker added to her academic trophy case by bringing home Mines' President's Senior Scholar-Athlete award along with numerous departmental honors at Oredigger commencement.
 
Athletically, the Silver Creek High School product in 2021-22 alone brought home USTFCCCA Cross Country All-America, USTFCCCA First-Team All-America in the indoor 5,000-meter run, USTFCCCA Second-Team All-America in the 3,000-meter run, USTFCCCA Second-Team All-America in the 10,000-meter run, USTFCCCA Cross Country All-Region, USTFCCCA All-Region in the indoor 3K and 5K, First-Team All-RMAC in cross country, First-Team All-RMAC in the 3K, First-Team All-RMAC in the outdoor 5,000-meter run. Baker finished 25th in the nation at the 2021 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships as Mines' women climbed their second podium as a team. She placed sixth in the nation in the indoor 5K and 10th in the nation in the 3K at the 2022 NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships. Baker rounded out the year by taking ninth in the nation in the 10K and 16th in the 5K at the 2022 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships. She also broke the program records in the 3K, indoor 5K, outdoor 5K and the 10K.
 
Miller's 2021-22 resume as a pole vaulter for the Orediggers included a pair of USTFCCCA First-Team All-America awards, USTFCCCA All-Region, First-Team All-RMAC, RMAC Champion status, RMAC First-Team All-Academic, RMAC Academic Honor Roll and two RMAC Field Athlete of the Week awards. Her two all-America awards in competition came thanks to a sixth-place finish at the 2022 NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships followed by a seventh-place finish at the 2022 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Along the way she shattered her own program records in both the indoor and outdoor record books. Miller was also a CoSIDA Third-Team Academic All-American in the 2020-21 school year.
 
Awards season continues for the Colorado School of Mines Cross Country and Track & Field teams with the announcement of the men's 2021-22 CoSIDA Academic All-America teams on Wednesday. All awards, signings and other applicable announcements will be published at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines track & field on Twitter and Instagram at @csmtrack. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.