March 11, 2013
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — All 10 of the University of Notre Dame’s 2013 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championship participants were named to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) list of All-America honorees Monday afternoon.
Jade Baber (60mH, 4x400m) and Michelle Brown (DMR, 4x400m) each collected a first team and second team All-America citation in their respective events. Barber becomes the first women in program history to be crowned an All-American in the 60mH. They become the seventh and eighth student-athletes to collect two All-America honors on the women’s side.
The pair additionally become the third and fourth women’s roster members to collect the award twice in the same year for the Irish joining Dominque Calloway (indoor/outdoor 55mH,100mH-1997) and Mary Saxer (indoor/outdoor pole vault-2009).
Patrick Feeney was Notre Dame’s highest finisher as the junior placed fourth in the 400m with a time of 46.03. Chris Giesting joined Feeney as a first team All-American in the 400m after finishing eighth with a time of 46.99.
They become the third and fourth Irish men’s track standouts to garner the honor in the 400m in program history as they join Notre Dame legends Alex Wilson (1930-31) and Bill Boyle (1964).
This marks the second All-America selection for the duo as Feeney nabbed the honor in 2011 (DMR) and Giesting in 2012 (DMR). Feeney and Giesting become the 15th and 16th Irish men’s track and field student-athletes to win the accolade on two occasions.
The pair help extend the Irish active steak of 22 straight seasons where at least one men’s team member has been selected for the honor. The women’s team has captured the award 15 times in the last 16 years.
Barber placed seventh in the 60mH (8.20) and Rebecca Tracy placed eighth in the mile (4:39.38) to earn their first team All-America accolades. Tracy becomes the third Irish track and field student-athlete to be given the honor in the mile as the senior joins Lauren King (2003) and Kerry Meagher (2004).
The women’s distance medley relay team comprised of Kelly Curran, Michelle Brown, Danielle Aragon and Alexa Aragon collectively racked up first team All-America honors after placing seventh with a time of 11:01.49. The Aragon sisters add to the family legacy as they join father Chuck Aragon with an All-American status. Chuck Aragon is a two-time Irish All-American in the two-mile relay (’79) and in the 1,500m (’81).
Megan Yanik, Margaret Bamgbose, Barber and Brown all contributed to an 11th place finish in the 4x400m relay to nab second team All-America accolades after crossing the line at 3:35.85. The foursome becomes the second women’s 4x400m relay team in program history to gather in All-America honors after Ayesha Boyd, Kristen Dodd, Liz Grow and and Kymia Love accomplished the feat in 2002, placing fifth in the event.
First-team honors were given to those who placed in the championships’ top eight in an event or were a member of an eight-person final. Second team honors were earned by those who finished between ninth and 16th place. In addition, 11 men and nine women earned honorable mention honors. USTFCCCA membership by a program is required to earn All-America awards.
A total of 288 men and 266 women earned USTFCCCCA honors after their performances at the national championship meet.
The ten indoor track and field All-Americans and the rest of the Irish track program will make their run towards claiming the All-America honors during the outdoor season as Notre Dame opens up its spring track and field campaign in Houston, Texas at the Victor Lopez Invitational March 22-23.
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