Norton Earns 2011 Division III Cross Country All-Academic status

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Guilford College sophomore Chad Norton was recognized as one of 141 students honored for academic and athletic achievement. The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) awarded Norton and the others Division III Cross Country All-Academic recognition on Wednesday.

Norton became the second runner in Guilford history to compete at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships last November. He finished 177^th among 300 runners with an eight-kilometer time of 25:45.71, sixth-fastest in school history. Norton set the Guilford five-kilometer record Sept. 16 in the Adidas XC Challenge posting a time of 15:24.9.

The Michigan-based athlete earned First-Team All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference honors Oct. 29 with his fourth-place finish at the league championships. He received All-South recognition with his fifth-place effort at the NCAA Division III South/Southeast Championships Nov. 12. Norton was recognized twice as Guilford's Student-Athlete of the Week.

To qualify for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Cross Country Team, the student-athlete must have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 or greater through the most-recent semester and placed in the top 35 at the NCAA Regional Championships.