Central College women’s track and field and cross country standouts Caroline McMartin and Megan Johnson were named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-America® Women’s Track and Field/Cross Country Team Wednesday.
McMartin was chosen for the second team and Johnson was picked for the third team. They are the first athletes selected to the women’s track and field/cross country list since Kate Patton in 2018.
McMartin had a 4.0 GPA as a biology major to go with a trio of All-American performances in the past year. Her first career All-America accolade was earned by taking 24th place at the 2022 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships. She was on the fifth-place distance medley relay team at the 2023 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships to earn her second All-American honor. She capped her junior year by crossing the line third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the 2023 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Additionally, she had five all-conference races during the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons and was also an all-conference finisher in cross country.
Johnson holds a 3.96 GPA as a kinesiology major and had two All-American finishes herself. After spending the fall semester studying abroad and missing the cross country season, Johnson returned for the indoor track and field season and ran on the All-American distance medley relay team. She also finished seventh nationally in the outdoor steeplechase. Johnson also had a pair of all-conference finishes in the outdoor season in the steeplechase and 5,000-meter run.
Central has now had 58 student-athletes named to a CSC Academic All-America® team. McMartin and Johnson bring Central up to five Academic All-Americans® for the 2022-23 academic year, tying a school record. The duo joined football wide receiver Jeff Herbers, wrestler Gage Linahon and women’s golfer/triathlete Thea Lunning as this year’s honorees.
To be eligible for consideration, a nominee must be a starter or key reserve and carry a minimum of a 3.50 cumulative grade point average and have reached sophomore standing. The elite squad is selected by the CSC membership from a ballot including all CSC Academic All-District honorees. The Division III program is financially supported by the NCAA Division III national governance structure. Selections were made based on accolades from the cross country and track and field seasons.