Elizabeth Weiers accepts the Elite 89 Award at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships Banquet in late May.
St. Peter, Minn. – The National Collegiate Athletic Association has launched a contest in which fans will be able to vote for their favorite Elite 89 Award winner from the 2013-14 academic year. The goal of this contest is to raise awareness for the Elite 89 Award and give schools another opportunity to celebrate their winner’s achievements on and off the field.
Among the list of this year’s Elite 89 Award recipients is Gustavus Adolphus track & field athlete Elizabeth Weiers (Le Center, Minn.). Weiers – an English major who carries a perfect 4.0 cumulative grade point average – was honored with the Elite 89 Award at the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships Banquet held on Wednesday, May 21 at the Gordon Field House on the campus of Ohio Wesleyan University.
A hammer throw specialist on Head Coach Dale Bahr’s squad, Weiers turned in the best season of her collegiate career this past spring. She highlighted the Gustavus women’s track and field team’s MIAC Outdoor Championships by earning a gold medal in the hammer with a season-best toss of 168-feet 7-inches. Not only was she the program’s first MIAC champion in the hammer throw since Tona Schmidtke won it in 2001, but Elizabeth also broke her own school-record of 166-feet 10-inches in the process. Weiers went on to qualify for the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships where she finished 13th overall (165’) and earn All-America Honorable Mention distinction.
The first round of the contest will run until 5 pm ET on Sunday, July 13 when the field will be narrowed down to 30 semifinalists. Next week, we will get down to 10 finalists and eventually one winner who will be highlighted from NCAA social media channels on Friday, July 18.
The Gustavus Athletic Department encourages fans to log on to the contest page and cast your vote for Elizabeth.
More information about the Elite 89 Award can be found here. The contest can also be accessed via the NCAA’s Facebook.
The Elite 89, an award founded by the NCAA, recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The Elite 89 is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA’s championships.
Weiers was the fifth Gustavus student-athlete to receive an Elite 89 Award. She followed in the footsteps of four women’s hockey players including Nara Higano (2010), Sarah Yungner (2011), and Marah Sobczak (2012), Carolyn Draayer (2013).