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EAST STROUDSBURG - East Stroudsburg University senior Christina O'Connor and junior Alex Zubko have earned spots on the Capital One Academic All-America team for women's and men's track and field/cross country, it was announced Wednesday.

O'Connor earns a spot on the first team and her second straight Academic All-America honor, after being named to the second team as a junior.

Zubko, on the third team, is mentioned on the Academic All-America team for the first time.

O'Connor (Oneonta, N.Y./Oneonta), a standout high jumper, becomes the 12th multiple-time Academic All-America selection in ESU history, and the fourth in women's track and field.

A Biology major with a 3.74 grade-point average entering this spring semester, O'Connor finished her career at ESU as a four-time All-American, five-time NCAA Division II national qualifier and seven-time NCAA DII provisional qualifier.

She was also a five-time PSAC champion, winning the last four conference titles.

During the 2015 indoor season, O'Connor was named the USTFCCCA Atlantic Region Indoor Field Athlete of the Year, the PSAC Indoor Field Athlete of the Year and PSAC Indoor Championships Field MVP after clearing 5-10, tying a PSAC record set in 1977, at the PSAC Championships.

She was named ESU's Women's Senior Athlete of the Year and co-Women's Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year on May 3.

O'Connor cleared 5-8 twice as a senior, tying her outdoor career best, at ESU's All-American Meet on April 18 and at the NCAA DII Championships on May 22 at Grand Valley State in Michigan. She finished sixth nationally both indoors and outdoors as a senior, and also earned All-America honors indoors as a sophomore in 2013, and outdoors as a junior in 2014.

At the Penn Relays on April 23, O'Connor cleared 5-7 3/4 to place third in a field of 42, and was the only non-DI athlete in the top 10.

She joins Rose Mascoli (2011-13), Corinne Fitzgerald (2012-13) and Laura Mason (1983-85) as multiple-time Academic All-America selections in ESU women's track and field/cross country history.

She is the 13th ESU student-athlete to earn first team Academic All-America status.

Zubko (Dallas, Pa./Dallas) was the PSAC Champion Scholar in outdoor track and field at the PSAC Championships, as the student-athlete with the top cumulative GPA (3.93, Exercise Science) at the championship site.

He was a PSAC qualifier in the 10,000m (32:32.86) outdoors and placed 11th in the conference. He is a junior academically and in cross country, and has sophomore eligibility in track and field. He was a PSAC and NCAA regional scorer in cross country for the Warriors in 2013, and finished first on the team (6th of 87 overall) at Fordham last fall.

Zubko is the seventh ESU men's track and field/cross country athlete to earn Academic All-America honors.

Zubko was one of three ESU men's track and field/cross country student-athletes to earn Academic All-District honors this year, along with senior Damien Boham and junior William Berry.

The PSAC is represented by 11 student-athletes among the 90 recipients (44 women, 46 men) on the Academic All-America teams.

The six women's selections are O'Connor, Mallory Sanner (Seton Hill) and Alex Zanella (California) on the first team, Sabrina Anderson (Slippery Rock) and Megan Lundy (Shippensburg) on the second team and Kate Dodds (Bloomsburg) on the third team.

The five men's selections are Aaron Dinzeo (California), the Academic All-America of the Year selection, and David Reinhardt (Slippery Rock) on the first team, Alex Hampel (IUP) on the second team and Ryan Spangler (Shippensburg) and Zubko on the third team.


 
About the Academic All-District and All-America program
 
The Academic All-District and Academic All-America teams recognize student-athletes for athletic and academic achievement and are nominated and voted on by members of CoSIDA (College Sports Information directors of America).

ESU is third in the PSAC with 83 Academic All-District selections in the last eight years (since 2007-08).

ESU had five Academic All-America selections in 2014-15 - redshirt senior Bryan Thomson (defensive line, first team) and redshirt junior Jon Schnaars (wide receiver, second team) in football, redshirt sophomore Jay Young (infield, second team) in baseball, Christina O'Connor (women's track & field/cross country, first team) and Alex Zubko (men's track & field/cross country, second team).

ESU had nine Academic All-District selections in Thomson, Schnaars, Young, O'Connor, Zubko, junior William Berry and senior Damien Boham (men's track & field/cross country), sophomore Shea Neal (women's soccer) and senior Jamie Kane (women's at-large-swimming).

This marks the fourth year that separate teams have been selected for Division II, Division III and College Division (NAIA/Canadian schools/two-year schools) institutions. The previous "College Division" included all DII, DIII, Canadian and junior college programs.

District 2 of Division II follows the NCAA's regional model and includes all schools from the PSAC (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference), Mountain East Conference and CIAA (Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association). The Northeast-10 Conference is also included in the region for football.

ESU has had 38 student-athletes combine for 53 Academic All-America awards in school history. Twenty-one student-athletes have combined for 30 awards in the last seven years.


ESU's 1st team Academic All-America selections
2015 (spring) - Christina O'Connor, women's track/cross country
2014 (fall) - Bryan Thomson, football (defensive line)
2013 (spring) - Corinne Fitzgerald, women's track/cross country
2013 (spring) - Rose Mascoli, women's track/cross country
2013 (spring) - Matt Tholis, men's track/cross country
2012 (spring) - Rose Mascoli, women's track/cross country
2012 (spring) - Dan Johnson, men's track/cross country
2010 (fall) - Matt Freed, football (linebacker)
2010 (spring) - Paul Wagner, men's track/cross country
2009 (fall) - Matt Freed, football (linebacker)
2004 (fall) - Matt Crispell, football (defensive back)
1999 (spring) - Katie Horst, women's at-large/field hockey
1998 (spring) - Katie Horst, women's at-large/field hockey
1987 (spring) - Michelle Knapik, women's at-large/field hockey
1984 (fall) - Ernie Siegrist, football (tight end)
1979 (spring) - Mike Petruny, baseball (infield)
 
ESU's Multiple-time Academic All-America selections
Christina O'Connor, women's track/cross country (2014, 2015)
Brendan McKeown, men's at-large/wrestling (2013, 2014)
Khriswayne Wallace, men's soccer (2012, 2013)
Nemanja Nikolic, men's soccer (2011, 2013)
Rose Mascoli, women's track/cross country (2011, 2012, 2013)
Corinne Fitzgerald, women's track/cross country (2012, 2013)
Matt Freed, football (2009, 2010)
Paul Wagner, men's track/cross country (2009, 2010)
Kamar Samuels, men's soccer (2002, 2003)
Katie Horst, women's at-large/field hockey (1997, 1998, 1999)
Rob Stone, men's at-large/track and field (1996, 1998)
Laura Mason, women's at-large/track and field (1983, 1984, 1985)