SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – Five members of the Union College women's cross country and track & field teams were recognized for their achievements in competition as well as their success in the classroom with spots on the 2024-25 Academic All-District Track & Field and Cross Country Teams, selected by College Sports Communicators and announced on Tuesday.
 
Senior Cat Dacey led the way for Union with her third straight CSC recognition, while senior Lauren Armstrong and sophomores Annabel Dobash, Kat Doran and Ashley Sheldon all picked up Academic All-District honors for the first time in their careers.

To be nominated for College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA) Academic All-District honors, student-athletes must rank in the top 50 in their region in a single individual event in cross country, indoor track or outdoor track; maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.50 or higher; and reach sophomore athletic and academic standing at the school. Additionally, Dacey and Sheldon were selected as CSC Academic All-America finalists and will advance to the national ballot, the results of which will be announced next month.
 
Dacey set a total of eight program records on the course and the track as a senior, completing an incredible career for the Garnet Chargers. She posted six of the top-nine 6K times in program history during the cross country season, earning All-Liberty League first-team honors and placing eighth at regionals to earn All-Region honors and qualify for the NCAA Championships for the second straight year. She set three new program records by herself during the outdoor track season, breaking school marks in the 800 meters (9th in Mideast Region), 1500 meters (14th) and 5000 meters (24th). This came after an indoor season in which she established program standards in the 800 meters and mile, ranking inside the top-20 regionally in both events. The neuroscience major was honored with Union's Robert M. Ridings Memorial Award.
 
Sheldon had another excellent season for Union as a sophomore, excelling in both the high jump and hurdles. The sophomore qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the high jump after tying her own program record with a mark of 1.67 meters that ranked fourth in the region and 20th nationally in addition to earning a second Liberty League title. She also earned All-Region recognition indoors as well by placing fifth in the region and 36th nationally in the event. In addition, the psychology major, who earned the school's Female Sophomore Athletic Prize, was a top-20 hurdler for Union as well, finishing the indoor season 19th in the Mideast Region and ranking 16th during the outdoor campaign.
 
Doran came on strong for Union during the outdoor season as one of the team's top sprinters. She broke a long-standing school record in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.63 seconds to rank 24th in the Mideast Region and also ranked 27th in the region with the team's top 200-meter dash time of the year. The political science major also finished the indoor season 46th regionally in the 60-meter dash.
 
Dobash made her mark in several distance events during her sophomore season, finishing with four regional top-50 times. She excelled in the 5000 meters, ranking 29th in the region with a program-record time of 18:30.85 during the indoor season and also posting the second-best outdoor mark ever at Union (and 35th best in the region this year). In addition, the environmental science major led the team in the 3000 meters with a 40th-place rank in the region and finished 41st in the mile.
 
Armstrong finished off her collegiate career with a pair of top-50 regional rankings as a senior in helping to lead the Union throwing unit. The senior ranked 14th in the Mideast Region in the javelin throw during the outdoor season and also cracked the top-50 in the indoor weight throw as well. The mechanical engineering major also posted the team's top shot put mark in both the indoor and outdoor seasons.
 
With the five honorees, Union student-athletes have now earned 275 Academic All-District honors since 2001.