2022-23 CSC Academic All-District XC/T&F

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. -- Eight members of the cross country and track & field teams for Elizabethtown College were named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District on Wednesday. The Blue Jays had four men and four women earn the honor, all for the first time in their careers.

For the men, Brandon Baxter, Jalen Belgrave, Christian Gingrich and Zachary Kardos were selected. Baxter was an all-region place finisher in cross country in 2022 as well as an All-Landmark First Team performer at the championship meet. He was also All-Landmark Second Team at the 2023 Landmark Indoor Championships as the runner-up in the mile.

Belgrave is a two-time relay champion in the conference and two-time All-Landmark First Team honoree for Elizabethtown. The senior also graduates with his name on the program's top 10 lists in three spots; the 60m (6th), 4x200m (5th) and 4x100m (6th). Belgrave was on the Dean's List every semester and will head to UPenn for their Master's for Social Policy & Practice (MSSP). He was the 2023 Landmark Men's Outdoor Track & Field Senior Scholar Athlete and the Blue Jay Athletic Association Male Distinguished Student-Athlete Award winner.

Gingrich has also achieved All-Landmark status in both cross country and track & field. This past fall, Gingrich finished 13th to earn a spot on the Second Team at the XC Championships. He was the indoor champion in the 5k and the outdoor runner-up in the 10k, his first two all-conference honors on the track for Etown. The junior is a two-time Fall and Spring Academic Honor Roll selection.

Kardos earned all-conference honors in the Distance Medley Relay in 2020 and 2022, though he excelled in the javelin for the Jays. Kardos, who was back for his graduate year, was the javelin runner-up in the Landmark at the 2023 Landmark Outdoor Championships and went on to take fourth place at the AARTFC Outdoor Championships the following week. He leaves Elizabethtown with the program's third-best javelin mark and is also seventh in the decathlon.

On the women's side, Laura Cardona, Erin Miller, Mylea Neidig and Trinity Soto represent the Blue Jays. Cardona is a two-time All-Landmark Second Team honoree in the 400-meter hurdles. The senior, also an ice skater, leaves Etown with the second-best 60-meter hurdle time indoors and 400-meter hurdle time outdoors. She is also fourth in the 100-meter hurdles all-time and eighth in the 60-meter dash.

Miller made her second consecutive appearance at the NCAA Div. III Outdoor Championships last week in the javelin. A three-time champion in the Landmark in the event, Miller is also a two-time All-Mid-Atlantic Region selection for having been ranked top five in the region in the jav the last two years. She was also the runner-up at the 2023 AARTFC Outdoor Championships.

Neidig won the bronze medal in the shot put at the 2023 Landmark Indoor Championships and ranks fourth all-time on the indoor shot put top 10 list. She is also fifth outdoors and moved up to third all-time in the discus for Elizabethtown. Neidig is a two-time Landmark Spring Semester Academic Honor Roll selection.

Soto dominated in the field and in the classroom for Etown. Another three-time Landmark champion for the Jays, Soto dominated the discus at the conference level, winning three consecutive golds. She also placed fifth and eighth, respectively, at the AARTFC Outdoor Championships in 2022 and 2023. A two-sport athlete, Soto is a three-time Academic Honor Roll for women's soccer and women's track & field and was selected as the 2023 Landmark Women's Outdoor Track & Field Senior Scholar Athlete.

For all eight athletes, it is their first selection to the CSC Academic All-District Team. All eight advance to the CSC Academic All-America® ballot. First-, second and third-team Academic All-America® honorees will be announced June 28 (women) and June 29 (men).