Girardi, VanMarter Named Academic All-Americans
Seniors Peter Girardi and Mark VanMarter, members of the nationally-ranked St. John Fisher College men’s track and field team, continued to cement their legacies as the pair were named Academic All-Americans by the College Sports Information Directors of America (COSIDA).
The announcement, made on Tuesday, June 19, marked the first time that a student-athlete from the track and field program has earned such a distinction.
The duo became the 21st and 22nd Academic All-Americans in the College’s history and were among three student-athletes to do so during the 2017-18 academic year. Senior Anna Marcy of the women's volleyball team was named Second-Team Academic All-American in the fall.
Named a First-Team Academic All-American, Girardi became the third Fisher athlete to win an individual national championship after winning the 400 meter hurdles at the 2018 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship in La Crosse, Wisconsin. A six-time All-American on the track, the Cicero, New York native finished as the national runner-up in the same event in each of the two previous seasons, and shattered his program record after crossing the finish line with a winning time of 50.50. His mark was the fifth-fastest time ever recorded in the event in Division III history and qualified the senior for the upcoming U.S. National Meet.
A biology major, Girardi played a significant role in helping lead Fisher to a pair of championships this season as the Cardinals won both the Empire 8 Indoor and Outdoor titles, with Girardi being named the Track Athlete of the Meet in each.
One of the most decorated athletes to ever don Cardinal Red and Gold, Girardi closed out his career having been named the Empire 8 Track Athlete of the Year three times and was named All-Conference nine times in total.
VanMarter, a biology major, was named Second-Team Academic All-American by COSIDA. Also named the Empire 8 Senior Scholar of the Year, VanMarter had a season for the ages. The Liverpool, New York native claimed the second individual national championship in College history with a win in the long jump at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championship in March.
A three-time All-American in field events, VanMarter continually rewrote the Fisher record book and graduated with his name beside four program records in all. A 10-time Empire 8 All-Conference recipient, VanMarter, like Girardi, helped lead Fisher to a pair of championships in 2018 and was a big reason that the Cardinals tied for seventh at the NCAA Championship in May – the team’s best finish to date.
VanMarter was named Field Athlete of the Year in each of the last two seasons and earned the Empire 8 Rookie of the Year award in 2015.
The season will continue for Girardi on Thursday, June 21, as the hurdler is set to compete in the U.S.A. Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.