Gannon's Westrick Earns Prestigious NCAA Elite 90 Award In Advance Of National Championships
Courtesy of Gannon Sports Info
SACRAMENTO, Calif. --- Joseph Westrick has finished first at three races this season for the Gannon men's cross country team.
On Friday evening, the senior finished first nearly 24 hours before the starting gun even sounded at the 2019 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships, as he was awarded the Elite 90 award as the championship participant with the highest cumulative GPA.
Westrick adds to his season of firsts as the first Gannon student-athlete to earn the prestigious award.
Debuting as the Elite 88 award during the 2009-10 academic year, the honor goes to the student-athlete with the highest GPA at the finals site of each of the NCAA's 90 championships. The individual must be at least a sophomore both academically and athletically, and must either have qualified for the national championships as an individual or be part of the designated squad size in a team sport.
Westrick, who won the PSAC's version of the award — the Champion Scholar — at this season's conference championship, is the 23rd PSAC student-athlete to earn the Elite 90 award, and just the third male.
An environmental engineering major, Westrick has maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA with 116 credits obtained.
After becoming Gannon's first NCAA qualifier last season, he has ripped off a string of firsts this year in his senior campaign. He earned the program's first conference championship back in late October, culminating in the first individual to win a PSAC title and the Champion Scholar award in the same year in conference history.
Two weeks later, he became Gannon's first two-time all-region performer with a fourth-place finish at the Atlantic Region championships.
After finishing 81st at nationals last season — the top finish by any PSAC runner — Westrick is back looking to chase All-America status. He and teammate Ryan Garich will compete Saturday at the 2019 national championships at Arcade Creek Cross Country Course in Sacramento, California.