Women's Team Earns Academic All-American Honors

The ICC Women's Cross Country team was listed by the Cross Country Coaches Association as having achieved the 7th highest team GPA in the nation for the semester ending December, 2008. The cumulative team average was a hefty 3.569. Individual honors were earned by Brittany Carius, Alyssa Imig, Elizabeth Isbell, and Darci Knapp Schmidgall. All had averages over 3.60.

The men's team just missed team honors with a cumulative GPA of 2.904, finishing 17th in the nation. Butler County Community College led the women with a near perfect 3.935 GPA, while Iowa Central Community College topped the men with 3.637.

Deena Kastor Quotes

Quotes from Deena Kastor, bronze medalist, marathon, 2004:

"I just love running. I love the invigoration of accomplishing goals every day. My goal of making the 2012 Olympic team is four years off, but each day that I'm out running I'm chiseling away at that goal. So there's a sense of daily gratification even before a long-term goal is reached."

"I love cross country. I love the ruggedness of it and battling the elements. It's just a gritty, tough way to run."

"I get as equally excited with good workouts as with good races."

"That for me kind of sums up what racing is all about; the preparation is what gives you all the tools and empowerment in the world. The race is a sweet reward for all the work you've done in the months leading up to it."