-- Story provided by Calvin University Athletics --
Calvin University runners Brandan Knepper and William Hofmann were named Academic All-Americans by the College Sports Communicators (CSC) for track and field/cross country on Wednesday.
Knepper (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Mechanicsburg) was named to the Second Team, while Hofmann (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich./Grosse Pointe Woods North) was named to the Third Team.
Brandan Knepper
Knepper started his year as one of the top runners in the MIAA in cross country, finishing second at the conference meet to lead the Knights to their 35th consecutive MIAA cross country championship. He followed that with a 42nd-place finish at the NCAA Championships to close the season.
During the indoor season, Knepper qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 5000 meters, taking 12th place after shattering the Calvin school record in the event earlier in the indoor season with a time of 14:13.74. In the outdoor season, Knepper posted the 15th-best time in the 10,000 meters (29:44.84) in NCAA Division III on the opening weekend, but saw his season cut short due to injury.
A three-time All-MIAA honoree in cross country, Knepper also stood out in the classroom with a 3.69 grade point average (GPA) and graduated in December with a degree in financial planning. Now a pursing his MBA at Calvin's School of Business, Knepper is an eight-time Calvin Dean's List member, a three-time MIAA Academic Honor Roll member, and a five-time USTFCCCA All-Academic Honoree. He was also the recipient of the Beré Memorial Award, which honors the top Calvin senior male student-athlete, based on athletic ability, scholastic rank, character and leadership
William Hofmann
Hofmann was also an important member of the Calvin cross country/track and field teams, helping the Knights to their 35th consecutive MIAA championship in cross country with a 13th-place finish in the conference meet after battling injuries for much of the fall.
In the indoor track season, Hofmann was named All-MIAA after taking first place in the 5,000 meters (14:58.16), and then backing that up with a second-place finish in the 3,000 meters (8:59.07) that same day. During the spring outdoor season, Hofmann earned All-MIAA for the second straight year after winning the 10,000 meters (32:19.6) and finishing second in the 5,000 meters (15:25.59).
In the classroom, Hoffman finished with a 3.88 GPA as an environmental science major. Hofmann is an eight-time member of the Calvin Dean's List, a three-time MIAA Academic Honor Role member, a 2022 CSC Academic All-District honoree for track and field, and a two-time USTFCCCA All-Academic Team honoree in cross country.
To be eligible to receive CSC Academic All-America honors, a student-athlete must first be named Academic All-District, which carries the qualifications of:
- Sophomore athletically or higher
- 3.50 cumulative grade point average (GPA) or higher
- Been enrolled at the institution for at least one calendar year
- Key performer
Knepper and Hofmann are among nine Calvin student-athletes during the 2022-23 school year to win CSC Academic All-America honors, setting a new Calvin record for a single year (previous record was seven).
Calvin has now produced a total of 158 CSC (formerly COSIDA) Academic All-America honorees.
Calvin head cross country coach Nicole Kramer on the two honorees:
"We are extremely proud of both Brandan and Will for their academic and athletic achievements this year. They both exude our team priorities of emphasizing Faith, Family, Academics and Running – in that order, and serve as key examples of what it means to compete as a Knight.
Brandan has had a bittersweet year, as he's run some of the fastest races in cross country, indoor and outdoor track history at Calvin among plenty of other accolades, but fallen just short of his career goal to be an All-American. Fortunately he does not allow external results to faze his determination to return stronger as a graduate student, and he knows how to keep this challenging sport in perspective with his other gifts and abilities.
Will has been a strong leader for our men's distance program. Last fall he spent half of the season cross training from a fluke injury, and returned to racing his career-best 8ks when it mattered most at MIAA, Regionals and Nationals. He proved himself further as a championship racer on the track, with two MIAA titles in the 5k and 10k, plus doubling back in the 3k (indoors) and 5k (outdoors) to score important points for the team."
