NASHVILLE, Tenn. - - Six Belmont men's cross country and track and field athletes,
Noah Epker,
Reuben Macdonald,
Payton Culp,
Lleyton Penn,
Garrett Connor, and
Sam Parker, have been named 2025-26 College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District, as announced by the organization last week.
Epker holds a 3.71 GPA in biblical studies. The Mobile, Alabama native helped Belmont place second at the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Championships in Distance Medley Relay (DMR) and placed seventh in the steeplechase at the same event.
Macdonald holds a 3.98 GPA and is studying mathematics. Hailing from Glasgow, Scotland, Macdonald was also a pivotal piece of that second place DMR team at the conference championship.
Culp holds a 3.58 GPA in architecture. In the pole vault, the Nashville native Nashville native placed second at the Vanderbilt Invitational indoor meet and fourth at the Outdoor Music City Challenge.
Penn, a recent Belmont graduate, had a 3.5 GPA majoring in exercise science. The Danville, Kentucky native had a very successful outing at the Brent Chumbley Memorial Hilltopper Relays where he placed third in shot put and ninth in hammer throw.
Connor holds a 3.82 GPA in computer science. The sophomore from Manassas, Virginia placed 12th at the MVC Championships in hammer throw and placed ninth in both shot put and discus throw at the Music City Challenge.
Parker holds a 3.53 GPA studying Business Systems & Analytics. The Oviedo, Florida native had a great 2025-26 campaign in the javelin as he placed second in at the MVC Outdoor Championships and placed first with a distance of 56.12m at the Hilltopper Relays.
To earn Academic All-District honors, student-athletes must be a starter or important reserve with at least a 3.50 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale). He must have participated in at least 75 percent of his team's games during the regular season. No student-athlete is eligible until he/she has completed one full calendar year at his/her current institution and been on a college roster in that sport for two years. For transfers, graduate students, and two-year college graduates, the student-athlete must have completed one full calendar year at the nominating institution to be eligible, although graduate students who are competing at a different institution than the one from which they earned their undergraduate degree are eligible even if they are in their first semester at the graduate institution. Nominees in graduate school must have a cumulative GPA of 3.50 or above both as an undergrad and in grad school.
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