By: Hunter McKay
KENNESAW - Four Kennesaw State student-athletes were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team for men's and women's track & field on Tuesday.
Kennesaw State's honorees for the award, which spans both the indoor and outdoor seasons, included
Eliana Mbadinga,
Harrison Pawsat,
Keira Hight and
Kali Terza.
Mbadinga maintains a 3.50 GPA in integrated health sciences. During the indoor season, she recorded three top-five finishes in the 200 meters, including a fifth-place finish at the Conference USA Indoor Championships with a time of 24.11 seconds. She also won the 400 meters at the Don McGarey Invitational and placed sixth in the event at the Conference USA Championships, crossing the finish line in 53.98 seconds.
Pawsat finished with 4.00 GPA and graduated with a Master of Science in cybersecurity. Pawsat competed in the weight throw during the indoor season and the hammer throw during the outdoor campaign. He recorded top eight finishes in five of his six weight throw competitions and posted a season-best mark of 18.22m (59-9.5) that ranked sixth in Conference USA. Pawsat also placed seventh in the weight throw at the CUSA Indoor Championships. Outdoors, he competed in the hammer throw seven times and achieved a personal-best mark of 59.98m (196-9) at the Life U Last Chance Qualifier. That performance ranked fifth in Conference USA this season, and he went on to place fourth in the hammer throw at the CUSA Outdoor Championships.
Hight recently graduated with a degree in management and entrepreneurship and a 3.95 GPA. Hight competed in the pole vault during both the indoor and outdoor seasons for Kennesaw State. During the indoor campaign, she recorded five top-six finishes in six competitions, including a victory at the Vanderbilt Invitational with a clearance of 3.85m (12-7.5). Her season-best indoor mark of 3.96 meters (12 -11.75 inches) came at the Conference USA Indoor Championships, where she helped the Owls secure the program's first women's indoor conference title. Outdoors, Hight competed in seven meets and earned three victories. She capped her season by winning the Conference USA outdoor championship with a personal-best clearance of 4.00 meters (13 feet, 1.5 inches).
Terza received her Master of Science degree in cybersecurity with a 3.87 GPA last month. Terza competed in the weight throw during the indoor season and the hammer throw during the outdoor campaign, earning national and conference recognition in both events. She garnered First Team All-America honors in the weight throw and claimed a bronze medal at the USATF Indoor Championships. Terza tied for the sixth-best weight throw mark in the NCAA during the indoor season and helped Kennesaw State capture its first Conference USA women's indoor championship. She won Conference USA titles in both the weight throw and hammer throw while posting the top marks in the league in each event. Terza also established Kennesaw State school records in the weight throw and hammer throw. Outdoors, she qualified for the NCAA East First Round in the hammer throw and recorded a season-best mark of 69.12 meters (226 feet, 9 inches), which ranked second in the East Region and sixth nationally. She landed a toss of 68.72 (225'5") to finish seventh in the hammer throw at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. The senior closed her outdoor career as a First Team All-American. She became the first female to earn First Team All-America honors in the hammer throw in program history.
