UNCP Among List Of USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams

NEW ORLEANS – The UNCP women's cross country team was among the 124 institutions named to the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) 2011 Division II Cross Country All-Academic Teams announced Thursday afternoon. 

The Lady Braves have a 3.25 cumulative team grade point average through the 2011 fall semester. The Black and Gold placed eighth for the second consecutive year at the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Championships after collecting a total of 234 points. Senior Livia Mahaffie was the first Lady Brave to cross the finish line with an overall eighth place finish, as she finished 30th overall, while also collecting 2011 USTFCCCA all-academic honors with a 3.826 GPA. 

Mahaffie is an elementary education major and is the top runner for the Lady Braves. The senior was named PBC Runner of the year and first-team all-PBC. She was the first runner to finish in 6-of-7 meets this season and began the season finishing first in the Gamecock Invitational with a time of 19:58.06 in the 5K leading UNCP to a first place finish overall. She recorded the third-fastest time in school history at the Charlotte Invitational with a time of 19:05 in the 5K.

Three other Lady Braves earned USTFCCCA all-academic status this 2011 season including Ashlee Doughty (3.898), Carrie Blakenship (3.68) and Kendra Dorn (3.569).

UNCP wrapped up their 2011 season with six new top-25 times in the record book, with Mahaffie capturing four. Six of the ten Lady Braves registered a new personal-best in the 5k and 6k, while Annette Sem marked a new personal-best in the 6k. The Black and Gold finished in the top-5 as a team in four of the eight meets competed in during the 2011 campaign. 

To qualify as a USTFCCCA All-Academic Cross Country Team, the team must have had a cumulative team GPA of 3.00 or better and have tallied a team score at the NCAA Regional Championships.