North Central Athlete Makes Academic All-District Track and Field Team

From North Central College

student-athlete Dan Kerley has been named to the 2011-2012 Capital One Academic All-District Seven Men's Cross Country and Track and Field Team (NCAA Division III), as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

The CoSIDA Academic All-America program is designed to recognize student-athletes for combining academic and athletic success. In order to be eligible, nominees must have maintained a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.30 (on a 4.00 scale) in addition to their athletic credentials. The nominations are then voted upon by the CoSIDA membership.

District Seven includes NCAA Division III institutions in the states of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. CoSIDA reorganized its voting districts prior to the start of this academic year and changed from a single College Division which included all NCAA Division II and Division III schools, as well as NAIA and two-year institutions, to a format which allows each division to have its own All-District and All-America Teams.

Kerley, a psychology major,  was an All-College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW), All-Midwest Region and United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic selection for the second straight season in cross country this past fall. He helped lead North Central to its 14th national championship in cross country in November, recovering after being knocked to the ground early in the race and placing 37th as the Cardinals secured a 62-point margin of victory.

He also earned All-America honors in outdoor track and field for the second straight season, placing seventh in the 10,000 meters at this year's Division III Outdoor Championships and helping North Central secure a fifth-place team finish. Kerley won individual CCIW Championships in the indoor 5,000 meters and outdoor 10,000 meters, and his 10,000-meter time of 29 minutes, 58.23 seconds, achieved at the Drake Relays, made him the seventh-fastest at that distance in school history.

North Central has now received 28 Academic All-District selections from CoSIDA. An All-District honoree for the second time, Kerley is once again eligible for selection to the 2011-2012 Division III Academic All-America Team, which will be released June 19.

More information about CoSIDA and the Academic All-America Program can be found at www.cosida.com.