Women's Track & Field | June 18, 2024

MORROW, Ga. – The College Sports Communicators (CSC) Announced on Tuesday afternoon its selections for the Academic All-District team for track & field and Cross Country.  The Clayton State University track & field and Cross Country teams saw three athletes placed on this list. 
 
Sancho Smith, Ivorie Smith, and Ariyonna Jones were selected as CSC Academic All-District selections for the first time in their careers.  Earlier this year, the three Laker student-athletes also were honored as Peach Belt Conference (PBC) Team of Academic Distinction selections. 
 
Smith, who hails from Warwick, Bermuda, had a solid season for the Lakers.  Sancho was a part of the 4x400 meter relay team that won the Outdoor PBC crown with a time of 3:17.35.  At the same meet, Smith finished sixth overall in the 800m run with a career best time of 1:53.34, which currently is fifth all-time in program history.  In the indoor season, Sancho broke his school record in the 600m run with a time of 1:22.23 at the KMS Invitational.  
 
Smith, who is native of LaGrange, Ga., had a breakout year for the Lakers.  Ivorie earned all-conference honors in the outdoor 400m hurdles, finishing in second place with a time of 1:06.87 and in the indoor DMR as her team finished in third with a time of 13:26.52.  Overall, Smith finished in the top-10 in 13 races and set PRs in the 400m, 800m, and the 400m hurdles this season. 
 
Jones had a tremendously successful season for the Lakers, which resulted in earning both indoor and outdoor USTFCCCA All-Southeast Region mention.  The native of Dublin, Ga. broke eight school records between the indoor & outdoor seasons including shattering the 200m dash and the 400m dash records in both the indoor and outdoor seasons.  At the PBC Outdoor Championships, Ariyonna earned the conference crown in both the 400m dash (55.75) and in the 200m dash (24.26) and in the 4x400 meter relay (3:53.00) and took second in the 4x100 meter relay. Also at the Championships, Jones clocked NCAA DII provisional times in the 200m and the 400m dash.  She also was a three-time all-conference finisher in the Indoor PBC Championships earlier in February.  She was key as the Laker women's track & field team placed second, as a team, in the Outdoor Championships, which is the best finish in program history. 
 
CRITERIA
To qualify for this honor, the student-athlete must boast a 3.50 GPA or higher, compete for over two seasons or one calendar year if the selection is a transfer, be a starter or a key reserve, and play or compete in at least 50% of competitions in the season.
 
RECAP
As a department, Clayton State saw 15 CSC Academic All-District selections from six different athletics programs.  Of those 15 selections, there were four women's soccer players, five men's soccer players, a pair of women's basketball players and one men's basketball player in addition to the three selections for track & field and cross country.  15 selections are the most in a season in school history surpassing the mark of 11 in the 2022-23 season.
 
The Academic All-America announcement from CSC will come on July 9^th for the women and the 10^th for the men.  Those releases will be available at noon on those respective days.
 
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