GREENWOOD, Ind. – Lewiston native Madigan Kelly capped her illustrious career with the highest academic honor a student-athlete can earn when she was voted a College Sports Communicators (CSC) Second-Team Academic All-American on Wednesday. She becomes just the third LC State female athlete from Cross Country/Track and Field to be tabbed an Academic All-American, joining Rachel Cundy and Jennah Carpenter. She is the lone representative from the Cascade Conference to be named to the prestigious list this season.
Kelly is the fourth LC State student-athlete this season to earn CSC Academic All-America honors, joining Juliauna Forgach Aguilar (volleyball), Sitara Byrd (women's basketball) and John Lustig (men's basketball). The total ties the most in a single school year for Warrior Athletics.
"I am beyond honored to be recognized for my hard work both in the classroom and on the track," Kelly said. "None of this would have been possible without my incredible support system. I'm so grateful for my parents, teammates, coaches, trainers, professors and mentors who believed in me and supported me every step of the way. Their encouragement gave me the opportunity to pursue and excel in my passions for both running and teaching. Thank you all for being such an important part of this journey."
Kelly, who holds Warrior records in the 60m dash, 60m hurdles, 100m dash and 100m hurdles, finished her collegiate career in May with her third NAIA All-American honor when she placed fourth in the 100m hurdles at the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships. She finished sixth in the 60m hurdles at indoor nationals to earn national honors at both national events this school year. Kelly graduated from LC State in the spring with a degree in elementary education with a 3.67 cumulative grade point average.
"Our athletes know how much we value hard work, doing things the right way and representing our team with pride. When someone in our family earns an honor like this, it validates everything we try to teach," coach Mike Collins said. "Madigan has been remarkable in how she carries herself and how she competes. She is a great teammate, friend and student. As she steps into her teaching career, I know she'll continue to represent the Warrior family with the same passion. She's going to inspire a lot of young people and show them that dreams are possible when you want them badly enough and you're willing to work. I am very proud of her."
Kelly earned her third Cascade Conference title in the 100m hurdles at the CCC Championships and was voted the CCC Female Track Athlete of the Meet for the second time in her career. In her senior season, she was voted the CCC Track Athlete of the Week twice and was named the LCSPYs Female Comeback Athlete of the Year after she missed all of last season with an injury.
Outstanding student-athletes are nominated for Academic All-District recognition by communications directors and must have a minimum 3.50 GPA and meet high athletic standards. The top student-athletes move on to the Academic All-America ballot, voted on by members of College Sports Communicators (CSC).
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