• Cross country team sets the pace for athletic and academic success

    Nichole Jones“Winning with Integrity” has been a mission of sorts for Baylor’s athletics department in recent years, and the Baylor women’s cross country team provided another example of what that means this fall. The Lady Bears had a great season in the field, finishing 17th at the NCAA Championships in November to lead all Big 12 schools.

    This week, the team was also honored for its academic success. The Lady Bears compiled a team GPA of 3.69, the seventh highest GPA in the country and the highest GPA of any school competing at the NCAA Championships, eight spots better than the next highest team.

    For its work, Baylor was named a 2007 Division I Women’s Cross Country All-Academic Team by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Two Lady Bears, senior Lauren Hagans and sophomore Nichole Jones, were named to the USTFCCA’s Women’s All-Academic Team; Hagans had earlier earned all-America honors, while Jones was one spot shy of joining Hagans as an all-American. (Click here for a nice feature on Jones’ faith and success from FCA.org.)

    Sic ’em, Baylor cross country!