The Times Herald (Norristown, PA)
Haas named to Academic All-District Team
Shippensburg University senior Tommy Haas (Ambler, Pa./HatboroHorsham) was named Friday afternoon to the 2020 Academic All-District® 2 Men’s Track & Field/Cross Country Team, a prestigious scholastic award selected by the College Sports Information Directors Association of America (CoSIDA).
Haas, a senior biology major concentrating in pre-med, maintained a 3.61 cumulative GPA entering his final semester this spring. He graduated earlier this month with a 3.65 cumulative GPA and has plans to attend medical school with hopes to conduct cancer and clinical research.
Haas’s senior season in 2020 was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. He finished three years of competition with the Raiders as a 2019 NCAA Outdoor Championships qualifier in the javelin, finishing in 14th place.
Additionally, Haas was a two-time U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Region performer in the javelin (206-10 in 2019; 200-04 in 2018) and a two-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships placewinner in the javelin (fifth in 2019, fourth in 2018).
Haas served as the vice president of SU’s chapter of the Tri-Beta Biology Honor Society and maintained an undergraduate research fellowship in the field of infectious disease and microbiology. In May 2019, Haas was selected to attend Penn State’s Primary Care Scholars Program – simultaneously balancing that prestigious placement with his preparation for the NCAA Championships.
He also completed a research fellowship with the Department of Defense in May 2018.
The 2020 Academic AllDistrict® Men’s and Women’s Track & Field/Cross Country Teams, selected by CoSIDA, recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances in athletic competition and in the classroom.
The CoSIDA Academic All-District® teams, to which Haas was selected, are divided into geographic districts across the United States and Canada. Shippensburg is in District 2, which features all schools from the PSAC, Mountain East Conference (MEC) and Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA).
Haas is one of just seven PSAC athletes selected to this year’s Academic All-District® 2 Men’s Track & Field/Cross Country Team. A total of 11 men were selected from District 2, including three men from the MEC and one from the CIAA.
Honorees selected firstteam Academic All-District® will advance to the CoSIDA Academic AllAmerica® ballot. Academic All-America® honorees will be announced from June 22-25.
The Division II and III CoSIDA Academic AllAmerica® programs are partially financially supported by the NCAA Division II and III national governance structures to assist CoSIDA with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 201920 Divisions II and III Academic All-America® programs.