The 2011 MIAC Women’s Cross Country Awards were announced Thursday, with the Knights sweeping the individual honors after claiming the conference championship last Saturday. Senior standout Simone Childs-Walker (Seattle, Wash./Lakeside) was named MIAC Women’s Cross Country Most Valuable Athlete for her first-place finish at the MIAC Championships, while head coach Donna Ricks, was honored as MIAC Women’s Cross Country Coach-of-the-Year.
Childs-Walker has finished in the top 3 at the MIAC Championship in each of her four years, earning four All-MIAC honors, with this year’s honor coming as a fitting conclusion to her outstanding career. She was named Women’s Cross Country Athlete-of-the-Week three times this fall, and has won the award six times in her career. She is also an All-American twice over, and has a good chance for a third honor this year.
The Knights went into the MIAC Championships trailing defending champs St. Olaf in the regional and national rankings, but the Knights pulled off a 1-2-3 finish to spark Carleton to its fifth conference crown. The team finished with a score of 33 points, 19 ahead of the Oles, with six Carleton runners finishing in the top 25 to earn All-MIAC or Honorable Mention honors. This is Ricks’ fourth championship in her 17-year career and her fourth Coach-of-the-Year honor.
--Sports Information
