FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Courtesy of CSC Athletics Communications
NEW LONDON, N.H. – Colby-Sawyer senior Alison Fairbairn (Dover, N.H.) has been named to the 2019-20 Academic All-District® Division III Women's Track & Field / Cross Country Team, selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
This award recognizes the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom. First-team Academic All-District® honorees advance to the CoSIDA Academic All-America® ballot. Those honorees will be announced from June 22-25. Full CoSIDA release > HERE
Fairbairn, an Exercise Science major who graduated with a 3.81 GPA, is one of 10 student-athletes to be honored from NCAA Division III District 2, which is comprised of Connecticut, Washington DC, Delaware, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont and West Virginia. Fairbairn is one of two representatives of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) along with Emily Manfra of Suffolk University from District 1.
Fairbairn becomes the first Colby-Sawyer cross country student-athlete to be honored and is the second track & field honoree (first female) in program history. Brian Frenkiewich '99 was honored in 1999.
Fairbairn, who is a Wesson Honors student, received the Exercise Science Baccalaureate Award and her group won the Exercise Science Capstone Award. Their project was titled "The effects of simulated hypoxic interval training, utilizing oxygen restriction masks, on VO2 max, and the relationship between changes in VO2 max and resting heart rate and VO2 max and lung functioning."
In addition, Fairbairn has been involved throughout campus and the community. She is a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), the Student Library Advisory Board (SLAB), the ESS Club, the dance club. She also is a student assistant to the Exercise Science professors, a tutor at the Student Learning Collaborative (SLC) and has volunteered at the Boston Marathon.
For Fairbairn's honors capstone, she created a guide the college can use to promote a program called "Exercise is Medicine on Campus."
Fairbairn's athletics accolades are just as impressive. She competed in every possible season throughout her career as a member of the cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field teams. During her senior year, she was a team captain for each team.
In cross country, she earned All-Conference second team honors all four years, helped the team to three conference championships and posted six career top-10 finishes.
In track & field, Fairbairn is the indoor record holder in the 1000-meter run, 4x800 relay and the distance relay. She helped the Chargers win an outdoor track & field conference championship.
She earned a nod to the GNAC All-Academic Team four times and was twice named to the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) All-Academic Team.
Fairbairn will continue her career after being accepted into the Boston University Physical Therapy program.