A trio of Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats in Blake Morgan, Reece Smith and Dakota Schmidt headline a group of outstanding student-athletes named to the 2022-23 Academic All-America® men's track & field/cross country teams as selected by the College Sports Communicators.
 
Morgan and Smith each gained first-team honors, while Schmidt landed on the second team. The trio are the 13th, 14th and 15th Bearcat track & field/cross country members to gain Academic All-America honors in school history.
 
Northwest has produced 51 Academic All-America® honorees beginning with Chip Gregory in football in 1981. Morgan, Smith and Schmidt are the 49th, 50th and 51st Academic All-America® selections in Bearcat history.
 
This season the Bearcat cross country and track & field squad produced a total of five Academic All-America® honorees, the most by a Northwest athletic program in a single season since the inception of the award.
 
Morgan, who hails from Kirksville, Mo., has maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA in applied health and exercise science. Morgan earned second-team All-America status with a 10th-place finish in the high jump at the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Morgan also gained three indoor All-America accolades with a 5th-place effort in 2021, a 7th-place finish in 2023 and a 12th-place tally in 2022.
 
Smith, a native of Garner, Iowa, has produced a 3.96 GPA in biology and biomedical sciences. Smith repeated as the NCAA Div. II national champion in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at this year's national outdoor meet in Pueblo, Colo. Smith also placed sixth in the nation in the 5,000-meter run at the 2023 NCAA outdoor championships. Smith also claimed MIAA outdoor titles in the 5,000m and the steeplechase at the league's meet in Jefferson City, Mo., to give him five career outdoor MIAA crowns in his collegiate career. Smith was a member of the distance medley relay squad that placed second in the nation at the 2023 NCAA Div. II indoor national championships. Smith owns Northwest school records in the indoor mile, indoor 3,000m, outdoor 5,000m and outdoor 3,000m steeplechase.
 
Schmidt, from Platte City, Mo., has tallied a perfect 4.00 GPA in applied health and exercise science. Schmidt was honored as the NCAA's Elite 90 Award recipient at the 2023 NCAA Div. II Outdoor Track & Field Championships with the highest GPA at the championship meet. Schmidt placed 16th in the javelin at the 2023 outdoor championships. Schmidt is a two-time NCAA second-team All-America honoree in the javelin with a 12th-place tally in 2021 and an 11th-place finish in 2022. He set the Northwest school record in the javelin (216'2") on May 14, 2022.
 
For more information regarding the Academic All-America® program, visit https://academicallamerica.com/.
 
Northwest's All-Time Track & Field/Cross Country Academic All-America® Selections
1989 – Bob Sundell, Track & Field (First Team)
1997 – Kathy Kearns, Women's Cross Country (Second Team)
1998 – Robby Lane, Men's Cross Country (Third Team)
1999 – Robby Lane, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
1999 – Robby Lane, Men's Cross Country (Second Team)
2002 – Tucker Woolsey, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
2003 – Clint Prange, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
2005 – Clint Prange, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
2020 – Marcus Klein, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
2022 – Marcus Klein, Men's Track & Field (Second Team)
2023 – Caroline Cunningham, Track & Field/Cross Country (First Team)
2023 – Kaylee Harp, Track & Field/Cross Country (Second Team)
2023 – Blake Morgan, Track & Field/Cross Country (First Team)
2023 – Reece Smith, Track & Field/Cross Country (First Team)
2023 – Dakota Schmidt, Track & Field/Cross Country (Second Team)
 

Northwest's All-Time Academic All-America® Selections
1981 – Chip Gregory, Football (First Team)
1984 – Betty Olson, Women's Basketball (Honorable Mention)
1985 – Marla Sapp, Women's Basketball (Third Team)
1989 – Bob Sundell, Track & Field (First Team)
1989 – Bob Sundell, Men's Basketball (Second Team)
1994 – Bill Bobo, Men's Tennis (Third Team)
1997 – Kathy Kearns, Women's Cross Country (Second Team)
1998 – Robby Lane, Men's Cross Country (Third Team)
1999 – Robby Lane, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
1999 – Robby Lane, Men's Cross Country (Second Team)
2000 – Kendra Smith, Softball (First Team)
2000 – Jill Quast, Volleyball (First Team)
2002 – Tucker Woolsey, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
2003 – Clint Prange, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
2004 – Josh Lamberson, Football (First Team)
2004 – Troy Tysdahl, Football (First Team)
2005 – Josh Lamberson, Football (First Team)
2005 – Clint Prange, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
2005 – Gena Lindsay, Women's Tennis (Second Team)
2006 – Zach Keith, Men's At-Large (Third Team)
2006 – Gene Lindsay, Women's Tennis (Second Team)
2008 – Myles Burnsides, Football (Second Team)
2009 – Myles Burnsides, Football (First Team)
2009 – Sean Paddock, Football (Second Team)
2010 – Jake Soy, Football (Second Team)
2011 – Trevor Adams, Football (Second Team)
2012 – Trevor Adams, Football (Second Team)
2012 – Nate DeJong, Football (Second Team)
2013 – Trevor Adams, Football (First Team)
2013 – Eric Reimer, Football (Second Team)
2014 – Eric Reimer, Football (First Team)
2016 – Kyle Zimmerman, Football (First Team)
2016 – Sarah Baldwin, Softball (Third Team)
2018 – Marqus Andrews, Football (Second Team)
2018 – Ryan Spelhaug, Football (First Team)
2019 – Marqus Andrews, Football (Second Team)
2019 – Ryan Spelhaug, Football (First Team)
2020 – Jackson Barnes, Football (Second Team)
2020 – Zach Howard, Football (Second Team)
2020 – Marcus Klein, Men's Track & Field (First Team)
2021 – Jackson Barnes, Football (First Team)
2021 – Zach Howard, Football (Second Team)
2022 – Marcus Klein, Men's Track & Field (Second Team)
2022 – Zach Howard, Football (Second Team)
2022 – Alyssa Rezac, Volleyball (Second Team)
2022 – Payton Kirchhoefer, Volleyball (Third Team)
2023 – Caroline Cunningham, Track & Field/Cross Country (First Team)
2023 – Kaylee Harp, Track & Field/Cross Country (Second Team)
2023 – Blake Morgan, Track & Field/Cross Country (First Team)
2023 – Reece Smith, Track & Field/Cross Country (First Team)
2023 – Dakota Schmidt, Track & Field/Cross Country (Second Team)