NEW ORLEANS — Seventeen Gulf South Conference student-athletes earned All-America honors for the 2023 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field season, as announced by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
FULL RELEASE
Student-athletes earned First-Team All-America honors by virtue of finishing among the top-eight in their respective events – including as a member of a relay team – at the 2023 NCAA DII Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Pueblo, Colo.
Second-team selections were given to those athletes who finished in spots Nos. 9-12 in individual events. Ninth and tenth-place relay teams also earned the distinction.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
As a conference, the GSC was had ten individual event All-Americans, including by five First Team nods. Four different member institutions were represented—Alabama Huntsville, Lee, Mississippi College and Shorter. UAH had one individual honoree and one relay acknowledged. Mississippi College also had a relay team recognized along with two individuals. Lee had three individual competitors recognized, while Shorter had two.
Lee’s Celine Ritter highlighted the women’s side as she earned First Team honors in the 1500 and 5000-meter races. At the national meet, she won the 1500 with a time of 4:36.09 and placed third in the 5000, stopping the clock at 16:43.39. Shorter’s Sharika Ardister, who received First Team accolades in the Shot Put, was the conference’s only thrower to earn All-America laurels.
Alabama Huntsville’s Michael Gizzi and Mississippi College’s Niklas Klei meanwhile topped the men’s side with All-American accolades apiece. Gizzi picked up First Team honors in the 200 and Second Team in the 100. Klei garnered Second Team accolades in the 400 and a member of the the Choctaw 4x400 team.
2023 USTFCCCA OUTDOOR ALL-AMERICANS
First Team
Michael Gizzi, Alabama Huntsville (200)
Cale Kassen, Lee (110m H)
Jan Lukas Becker, Mississippi College (10,000m*)
Gabe Hodson, Mississippi College (4x400)
Niklas Klei, Mississippi College (4x400)
Fabio Palmieri, Mississippi College (4x400)
Connor Stewart, Mississippi College (4x400)
Celine Ritter, Lee (1500* • 5000)
Shakira Ardister, Shorter (Shot Put)
Ijah Drake, Alabama Huntsville (4x100)
Zakiria Holifield, Alabama Huntsville (4x100)
Krystalynn Oatmann, Alabama Huntsville (4x100)
Chandler Robinson, Alabama Huntsville (4x100)
Second Team
Michael Gizzi, Alabama Huntsville (100)
Niklas Klei, Mississippi College (400)
Jeremiah Sims, Shorter (110m H)
Aria Hawkins, Lee (1500)
* - won the event