FHSU Athletics
AUSTIN, Texas - Four student-athletes representing the Fort Hays State men's track and field team were named to the 2022-23 College Sports Communicators Academic All-America Teams, announced Thursday (June 29) by the national organization. Hayden Albright and Ryan Stanley were first team Academic All-America selections, while Ethan Lang earned a spot on the second team and Xavier Robinson was listed on the third team.
Sports Information and Athletic Communication professionals nationwide vote on the Academic All-America Team, which reflects both academic and athletic accomplishments of the individuals selected.
Stanley earned first team Academic All-America honors for the second time after also being selected in 2020-21. A two-time NCAA Division II Champion in the pole vault, Stanley finished his career with eight All-America honors after finishing fifth at the 2023 outdoor national meet and seventh at the 2023 indoor national meet. He was the male recipient of this year's Ken B. Jones Award, annually given to the top student-athlete in the MIAA. The Bennington, Kan. native is a two-time MIAA champion, five-time All-MIAA honoree and seven-time All-Region selection. He holds the school record in the pole vault both indoors and outdoors. Stanley graduated summa cum laude with his bachelor's degree as a double major in management (human resources) and Spanish for specific purposes with a GPA of 3.95 in the fall of 2022. He recently completed an MBA with an emphasis in human resource management with a GPA of 3.63 in the spring of 2023.
Albright lifted his third All-American trophy this year, placing seventh in the 400m dash at the indoor national meet. He is a three-time All-American, six-time All-MIAA honoree and two-time MIAA champion. Albright holds five school records, including the indoor 400m dash and four relays, all of which were set this season. He earned his fourth and fifth MIAA Scholar-Athlete Awards this season. The Kingman, Kan. native is an information networking and telecommunications major emphasizing in cybersecurity that maintains a 3.79 GPA.
Lang added five All-MIAA medals to the trophy case this season, including one conference title with the indoor 4x400m relay. For his career, Lang is a two-time All-American, 12-time All-MIAA winner and three-time conference champion. His name appears next to five school records, including the indoor 600y run and four relays. The Hays, Kan. native has now earned seven MIAA Scholar-Athlete Awards after picking up the distinction both indoors and outdoors. Lang graduated cum laude with a degree in finance emphasizing in financial planning this spring with a GPA of 3.76.
Robinson is a two-time All-MIAA honoree, one-time MIAA champion and one-time All-American. He competed at three different NCAA DII national championships while earning 21.5 points at the conference championships during his career. He ranks first at FHSU during the DII era in the indoor triple jump. The Hoisington, Kan. native earned a pair of MIAA Scholar-Athlete Awards in his career at FHSU. Robinson graduated cum laude with a degree in finance this spring with a GPA of 3.77.
Fort Hays State was one of nine NCAA Division II institutions with multiple men's track and field/cross country Academic All-Americans this year. Only Colorado School of Mines (five) had more selections.
Fort Hays State had more selections than any other MIAA program, with the Tigers earning four of the nine MIAA selections this year (Northwest Missouri State 3, Central Missouri 1, Pittsburg State 1).
This if the first time Fort Hays State has had more than two student-athletes from the same team earn Academic All-America status in the same season and just the third time a team has had multiple in the same year (2023 women's track and field, 1997 football).
Fort Hays State led the MIAA with a school-record 10 Academic All-America honorees this season, bringing the all-time total to 68. Other Tigers earning the honor this season were Alex Schremmer (football), Isabel Robben (women's soccer), Ed Scott (baseball), Morgan Brasser (women's golf), Addie Berens (women's track and field) and Mattie Rossi (women's track and field).