Cazzola, Dewitt Receive Top Scholar-Athlete Awards

Senior runners John Dewitt (Oshkosh) and Christy Cazzola (Kaukauna) were named the 2013 UW-Oshkosh John Taylor Scholar-Athlete award winners on May 5.

The John Taylor Scholar-Athlete honor is annually presented to an outstanding male and female senior letter winner who compiled a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher. The award reflects not only individual athletic achievements, but also embodies the ideals of team contribution, scholastic endeavor and community involvement.

Cazzola won the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championship during November. She was named National Athlete of the Year after also placing first at the WIAC and Midwest Regional championships.

In March, Cazzola led the Titans to an indoor track & field national title. She won both the mile and 5,000-meter runs while anchoring a victorious distance medley relay. Cazzola broke all-time Division III records in each of those events, along with the 800-meter run.

Cazzola owns a 3.34 GPA majoring in secondary education. She was named to the 2012 Academic All-America Third Team.

At last week’s WIAC Outdoor Track & Field Championship, Dewitt took first in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 31:21.14. At the national cross country meet in November, Dewitt placed 32nd for All-America honors.

Dewitt holds a 4.0 GPA with majors in mathematics and secondary education. He was selected an Academic All-American in both 2011 and 2012.

The John Taylor award was first presented in 1976.