West Texas A&M’s Seniru Amarasinghe and Leah Belfield have been selected as Lone Star Conference Indoor Track and Field Academic Athletes of the Year, it was announced by the league office on Monday (March 4).
Amarasinghe headlined a group of 11 on the men’s All-Academic Team, while Belfield led 11 standouts on the women’s All-Academic Team.
Amarasinghe, a junior from Colombo, Sri Lanka, has a 4.0 GPA in finance. He was also an Indoor All-Academic Team selection last season. He is a member of three LSC Indoor championship teams and a two-time All-American in the high jump. Amarasinghe currently holds a top-20 mark (2.12m, 6'11.5) in all of NCAA Division II.
Joining Amarasinghe on the men's All-Academic Team is teammates Gerard Bryan and Jeremiah Jakpa; Angelo State’s Cole Paxton; DBU’s Adam Whitehead; Eastern New Mexico’s Timothy Frederick; Lubbock Christian’s Ryan Gordon and Nathan Karseno; Oklahoma Christian’s Sam Fisher and Wyatt Thiel; and UT Tyler’s Ashton Turner.
Paxton is also a back-to-back selection.
Belfield, a senior from Te Awamutu, New Zealand, holds a 4.0 GPA as a Sports and Exercise Science major. She is a four-time Indoor All-Academic Team selection and three-time USTFCCA All-Academic picks. Belfield is a NCAA Division II national champion in the 200-meter and member of five LSC Indoor championship squads. She has a top 25 mark in the 200 and top 15 mark in the 60 meters this season.
Belfield was joined on the women’s All-Academic Team by teammates Laiten Greeson and Miriam Zanovello; Angelo State’s Maricia Spence; DBU’s Amanda Chacon, Meadow Housman and Megan Smith; Eastern New Mexico’s Meghan Rodriguez and Tamia Smith Lubbock Christian’s Kiley Cummings; and UT Tyler’s Abeni Kratzmeyer.
Greeson, Zanovello, Spence, Chacon, Housman, Cummings and Kratzmeyer are all two-time selections.
To be eligible for LSC academic honors, student-athletes must carry at least a 3.30 grade point average and have reached sophomore status both athletically and academically. The Academic Athlete of Year Award and All-Academic Team are selected from the list of academically qualified players, with the league's sports information directors voting on the basis of both academic and athletic achievement.
2024 LSC INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD ALL-ACADEMIC AWARDS
LSC Men’s Indoor Track and Field Academic Athlete of the Year: Seniru Amarasinghe, West Texas A&M
[Sorted in alphabetical order by team name]
MEN'S ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
| Name |
Team |
Year |
Major |
Hometown |
| Cole Paxton |
Angelo State |
Sr. |
Intelligence and Analysis |
Brackettville, Texas |
| Adam Whitehead |
DBU |
Sr. |
Philosophy, Politics & Eco. |
Gilbert, Ariz. |
| Timothy Frederick |
Eastern New Mexico |
Sr. |
Physical Education |
La Brea, Trinidad & Tobago |
| Ryan Gordon |
Lubbock Christian |
Sr. |
Psych/Sports & Ex Sci |
Lucas, Texas |
| Nathan Karseno |
Lubbock Christian |
Sr. |
Mass Media |
Hebron, Texas |
| Sam Fisher |
Oklahoma Christian |
Jr. |
Nursing |
Norman, Okla. |
| Wyatt Thiel |
Oklahoma Christian |
Sr. |
Biology |
Stillwater, Okla. |
| Ashton Turner |
UT Tyler |
Jr. |
Education BSED |
Fort Worth, Texas |
| Seniru Amarasinghe |
West Texas A&M |
Jr. |
Finance |
Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| Gerard Bryant |
West Texas A&M |
Sr. |
Criminal Justice |
Harker Height, Texas |
| Jeremiah Jakpa |
West Texas A&M |
Jr. |
Finance |
Warri, Nigeria |
WOMEN'S ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
LSC Women’s Indoor Track and Field Academic Athlete of the Year: Leah Belfield, West Texas A&M
[Sorted in alphabetical order by team name]
| Name |
Team |
Year |
Major |
Hometown |
| Maricia Spence |
Angelo State |
Gr. |
Business Administration |
Christiana, Jamaica |
| Amanda Chacon |
DBU |
Sr. |
Elementary Education |
Whittier, Calif. |
| Meadow Housman |
DBU |
Jr. |
Kinesiology |
New Caney, Texas |
| Megan Smith |
DBU |
Sr. |
Psychology |
Clyde, Texas |
| Meghan Rodriguez |
Eastern New Mexico |
So. |
Physical Educ./Statistics |
Albuquerque, N.M. |
| Tamia Smith |
Eastern New Mexico |
Gr. |
Counseling |
Mansfield, Texas |
| Kiley Cummings |
Lubbock Christian |
Jr. |
Criminal Justice |
Blackwell, Texas |
| Abeni Kratzmeyer |
UT Tyler |
Jr. |
Nursing |
Mineola, Texas |
| Leah Belfield |
West Texas A&M |
Sr. |
Sports & Exercise Sci |
Te Awamutu, New Zealand |
| Laiten Greeson |
West Texas A&M |
Gr. |
Plant, Soil & Enviro Sci |
Sublette, Kan. |
| Miriam Zanovello |
West Texas A&M |
Gr. |
Biology |
Chivasso, Italy |