WILMINGTON, Ohio - Wilmington College men's cross country and track & field student-athlete Simon Heys has garnered Academic All-District honors from CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) as the organized unveiled its cross country and track & field All-District teams on Thursday. He will advance to the national ballot with a chance at becoming an Academic All-American.
Heys, a junior from Wilmington, has been the top distance runner for the Fightin' Quakers during the indoor and outdoor track seasons. A holder of eight program records (four indoor and four outdoor), Heys will be competing in the 10,000-meter run at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships this evening (May 26) for the second consecutive year. After finishing 13th in the race a season ago, Heys enters the race with the fifth fastest time in the country.
Also a standout in cross country, Heys had a banner season in the fall of 2021. He overcame losing a shoe at the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Cross Country Championships, which were hosted on the WC campus, to earn All-OAC honors. Heys then became the first All-American in the NCAA era (1990-present) with a fifth-place finish (23:57.0) at the 2021 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in Louisville, Kentucky.
A sport management major, Heys carries a 3.89 cumulative grade point average (GPA) and has been actively involved in some of the program's hands-on learning opportunities, working the College Football Playoff title game, the Super Bowl, the Flying Pig Marathon and others.
"Simon has had a phenomenal year," Head Cross Country and Track & Field Coach Ron Combs said. "His work ethic is second to none, and it's the reason succeeds in his academics as well as on the course and track."
The 10,000-meter run at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships is scheduled for a 9:15 p.m. start.