Cazzola Appears In Sports Illustrated Magazine
Christy Cazzola (Sr. • Kaukauna) of the UW-Oshkosh women's cross country and track & field teams is one of seven amateur athletes featured in the Dec. 31 “Faces in the Crowd” section of Sports Illustrated.
Cazzola was recognized for winning the NCAA Division III Championship on Nov. 17 in Terre Haute, Ind. She posted a 6,000-meter time of 20:53 to defeat Alison Steinbrunner of Ohio Northern University by 15 seconds. Cazzola finished second at the national meet last season and fourth in 2010.
During her six races this year, Cazzola won four times. She repeated as Midwest Regional champion and won her third straight WIAC title. Cazzola finished second to NCAA Division I runner Agnes Kemboi of Texas Christian University at the Notre Dame Invitational held Sept. 28.
Cazzola carries a 3.29 grade-point average as a special education major. The four-time NCAA Division III track & field champion was a member of last year's College Sports Information Directors of America Academic All-America team.
On Nov. 30, the 27-year-old mother of two ran the fastest 5,000-meter time in NCAA Division III history. She clocked a 16:21 to defeat 25 other women at the Grand Valley State University Early Bird Invitational in Allendale, Mich.
Other members of the Dec. 31 “Faces in the Crowd” section are football player Matt Bodamer of Port Allegheny, Pa., basketball player Jasmine Lee of Chestertown, Md., cross country runner Sam Wharton of Tipp City, Ohio, open-water swimmer Skylar Webb of Kaneohe, Hawaii, and football players Drake Harris and Joel Schipper of Grand Rapids, Mich.
Cazzola is the fifth Titan to appear in Sports Illustrated’s long-running “Faces in the Crowd” section. She joins gymnast Chuck Brewster (March 23, 1992), baseball player Tim Jorgensen (June 26, 1995), cross country and track & field runner Liz Woodworth (July 26, 2004) and track & field standout Holly Ozanich (March 21, 2011) as members of the UW-Oshkosh “Faces in the Crowd” fraternity.
A “Face in the Crowd” is someone, almost always a non-professional, who accomplished some notable feat in sports. Editors have selected individuals to this segment of the weekly magazine since 1956.