STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford swept the Pac-12 Conference men's cross country awards and captured both the men's and women's Freshman of the Year awards.
Two-time Pac-12 individual champion Charles Hicks headlined the Cardinal men's sweep, which included Ricardo Santos as Coach of the Year and Robert DiDonato as Freshman of the Year. Five Stanford men earned all-conference first-team honors.
Riley Stewart was named Pac-12 Women's Freshman of the Year and Zofia Dudek earned first-team honors.
Riley Stewart. Photo by Brandon Vallance/ISIphotos.com.
Hicks, a senior academically and junior in eligibility, has received a Pac-12 major award in each of his three seasons. He was Freshman of the Year in the COVID-delayed 2020-21 season and earned his first Athlete of the Year award last year.
Charles Hicks. Photo by Yannick Peterhans/Pac-12.
Hicks led a Stanford men's team victory at the Pac-12 Championships in Riverside last week. Five Cardinal placed among the top seven and six were in the top 10. All received all-conference recognition. Meika Beaudoin-Rousseau, Thomas Boyden, Hicks, Ky Robinson, and Cole Sprout were named to the first team and Devin Hart to the second team.
DiDonato and Stewart were the top freshmen finishers at the conference meet. DiDonato, a redshirt freshman, was 19th in the men's race and Stewart, a true freshman, was 24th in the women's.
Robert DiDonato. Photo by David Hicks.
Hicks is Stanford's second two-time Pac-12 Cross Country Men's Athlete of the Year winner, following Olympian Grant Fisher (2017, 2018). Hicks is the eighth from Stanford overall to win a Pac-12 men's title.
For Santos, this is his second Pac-12 Coach of the Year award in his four seasons at Stanford, and second conference championship.
DiDonato follows Stanford past Men's Freshman of the Year winners Hicks (2021), Thomas Ratcliffe (2016), Miles Unterreiner (2009), Neil Davis (2002) and Donald Sage (2000).
Stewart is Stanford's record ninth Women's Freshman of the Year, joining Dudek (2019), Olympian Elise Cranny (2014), Cayla Hatton (2012), Teresa McWalters (2004), Arianna Lambie (2003), Sara Bei (2001), Victoria Chang (2000) and Erin Sullivan (1999).
Ricardo Santos. Photo by Brandon Vallance/ISIphotos.com.
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Men's Athlete of the Year
Charles Hicks
Men's Freshman of the Year
Robert DiDonato
Men's Coach of the Year
Ricardo Santos
Women's Freshman of the Year
Riley Stewart
Men
First team
Meika Beaudoin-Rousseau
Thomas Boyden
Charles Hicks
Ky Robinson
Cole Sprout
Second team
Devin Hart
Women
First team
Zofia Dudek