Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Three Valparaiso cross country student-athletes were awarded Horizon League Academic All-League honors as the league revealed the squads.  Sophomore Claire Johnson (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) represented the Crusaders on the women’s side, while junior Joe Johnson (Darien, Ill./Downers Grove South) and senior Jordan Piaskowy (Crete, Ill./Illiana Christian) each earned the accolade on the men’s side.

Claire Johnson was one of the Crusaders’ top runners on the women’s side all season long, finishing among Valpo’s top-three in all six of its races.  Johnson led Valpo with a 20^th-place finish at the Horizon League Championship meet, and also finished 20^th out of 111 runners at the Evansville Invitational with a season-best 5K time of 18:58.73.  The sophomore boasts an impressive 3.994 cumulative GPA as a double major in German and international economics & cultural affairs.

Joe Johnson helped contribute to Valpo’s team score in two of his five meets, finishing among the Crusaders’ top-five at the Crusader Open and the Evansville Invitational.  Johnson also posted a season-best 8K time of 28:21.24 at the latter meet.  The junior, who holds a 3.711 cumulative GPA as an accounting major, has been a member of the Horizon League Academic Honor Roll each semester eligible and has earned Presidential academic honors during his time at Valpo.

Piaskowy ranked among Valpo’s top-five runners in all five of his meets in 2011, including crossing the line third-fastest among the Crusader contingent at the Horizon League Championship and the NCAA Great Lakes Regional.  The senior ran a season-best 8K time of 27:41.63 at the Navy Invitational as well.  Piaskowy, who currently maintains a 3.756 cumulative GPA as a civil engineering major, has been a member of the Horizon League Academic Honor Roll each semester eligible and has earned Presidential academic honors during his time at Valpo.