Two EOU Distance Harriers Make the Academic All-District First Team
By Paul Hall on Thursday, July 22nd, 2021 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
LA GRANDE – (Information provided by EOU Athletics) The College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) has announced its 2020-21 Academic All-District Cross Country/Track & Field First Team. Eastern Oregon University had a pair of athletes make the list in Michelle Herbes and Hunter Nichols.
For Herbes and Nichols, they now qualify for Academic All-American status after making the First Team list. It is also the first CoSIDA Academic All-District honor for either athlete. To qualify, student-athletes must have a minimum 3.30 GPA to be nominated and should be a significant contributor to their teams.
Herbes had a solid 2020-21 season in both cross country and track & field as she qualified for the National Championships for all three seasons of cross country and indoor/outdoor track. She also garnered All-American status during the indoor season as she placed fourth in the 1,000-meter run at Nationals with a time of 2:56.93. For her career, Herbes is a two-time All-American in the 1,000 having finished eighth in 2020 at Indoor Nationals. She has also been part of four All-American relay squads in the 4×400 and 4×800, twice respectively. In cross country, she has qualified for the National Championship meet three times in her career. She was second at the CCC Cross Country Championships in 2019 and this year she placed fifth at the conference meet. This past outdoor season, Herbes won the CCC crown in both the 800-meter run and 1,500 meter run. Academically, Herbes boasts a 3.61 GPA while majoring in Physical Activity & Health. She has been named to the CCC U.S. Bank All-Academic Team four times, twice in cross country and twice in track & field, during her EOU career.
Nichols was a stout competitor for the Mountaineers during the 2020-21 academic year. He was a top two runner during the cross country season for EOU and during a shortened indoor season, he was still able to qualify for the National Championships in the 1,000-meter run. Nichols went on to garner All-American status in 1,000 as he placed fifth running a 2:32.51. During the outdoor season, Nichols had a pair of runner-up finished at the CCC Championship meet. He was second in both the 800 and 1,500-meter run. His efforts were key in helping the Mountaineer men win the CCC Outdoor Title. He qualified for the 2021 Outdoor National Championships in the 800 and placed 14th overall. During the cross country season, he finished 26th at the CCC Championships. Academically, Nichols sports a 3.83 GPA while majoring in Biology. He was named to the U.S. Bank All-Academic Team in both cross country and track & field for the 2020-21 academic year.
The 2020-21 CoSIDA Academic All-America Teams for men’s and women’s cross country/track & field will be announced on Monday, Aug. 9.h
