Austin, Texas - For the first time in program history, the Marian men's cross country and track and field program has earned three College Sport Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America honors, as the trio of Olivier Lifrange, Owen Pittman, and Eric Materna were each named to the 2024-25 Cross Country and Track and Field Academic All-America Team. Lifrange and Pittman were named to the First Team, while Materna earned Second Team honors.

Eligible nominees for the CSC Academic All-America program must maintain a 3.50 cumulative grade-point average while having reached sophomore status academically, and must rank in the top-25 in their conference or region, based on TFRRS rankings at the time of nomination. The event can be a singular event, either indoor or outdoor, and must be based on an individual event.

The trio helped Marian to a dominant year on the track, as the Knights were Crossroads League Indoor and Outdoor Champions, while also winning the program's first-ever NAIA National Championship, as Marian brought home the red banner for the 2025 Indoor Season. Additionally, Marian's strong runners helped the Knights to a fourth-place finish in the NAIA Outdoor Championship, while Pittman additionally helped the Knights to a program-record 10th-place performance at the Cross Country National Championship.

Each of the three played a role in Marian's 2025 NAIA Indoor National Championship, with Materna and Lifrange running on the championship 4x400m relay team. Both of the mid-distance champions were also All-American in the 600m, and at the outdoor championship, Materna was an All-American in the 400m. Pittman competed on the national champion DMR team, running as the lead-off leg of the relay. Pittman was also an All-American in both the indoor and outdoor 4x800m relays. 

Pittman and Lifrange, graduating members of the program, were named CSC Academic All-America First Team members, while Materna, a returning junior, was named a Academic All-America Second Team honoree.

Four of the 20-member Academic All-America® NAIA men's track & field/cross country teams boast a perfect 4.0 GPA in their undergraduate or graduate work. The 11-man first team has an average undergraduate GPA of 3.84, with the entire 20-man team combining for a collective 3.85 undergraduate GPA.

The NAIA Academic All-America® program is financially supported by the NAIA national governance structure to assist the College Sports Communicators with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2024-25 NAIA Academic All-America® program.

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