LARAMIE – They are judged publicly based on what happens when the lights are on in the Arena-Auditorium, War Memorial Stadium and the other magical Wyoming Athletics venues.
 
What is sometimes forgotten: The Cowboys and Cowgirls, even in this era of the transfer portal and revenue sharing, are still required to perform in the classroom.
 
During the spring semester, UW's student-athletes had a collective grade-point average of 3.43, the highest in the history of the athletic department.
 
The average GPA for all UW students for the spring semester was 3.26. During the 2025 fall semester, student-athletes had a 3.42 GPA while the university as a whole posted a 3.29 GPA.
 
"A 3.42 grade-point average across the board for over 420 athletes for an entire year is just a phenomenal accomplishment," UW Athletics Director Tom Burman said. "It starts with focused students who come here to get a degree first and foremost. Secondly, we must recognize our OAS staff for their hard work. Equally important is our coaches who recruit and hold students accountable."
 
The Athletics Office of Academic Support (OAS) is led by Colter Linford, a Cokeville native who was named the assistant athletic director for academics & eligibility in January 2025.
 
"We didn't set out to have the highest GPA ever, but I do think it's running more smoothly up here," Linford said of his first full academic year in the position.
 
Linford's office sits in the Marian H. Rochelle Academic Center on the second floor of the High Altitude Performance Center. Inside the 8,200-square-foot space, there are 67 computer study carrels and 11 private/group tutor rooms.
 
UW's academic coordinators are Jenny Dueck (men's and women's golf, men's and women's swimming and diving, tennis), Rob Mitchell (football), Emma Valainis (soccer, volleyball) and Hannah Vanpool (men's and women's basketball, cross country, track and field).
 
"It will be popping occasionally," Linford said of Pokes taking advantage of the academic center. "Like on days football is not practicing, it's probably a little too loud for my taste, but at least they're up here. We usually have a ton of student-athletes up here and we have a lot of good mentors, too."
 
Some of UW's academic highlights from the record-setting 2025-26 school year include:
 
Cross country
 
The Cowboys and Cowgirls were named U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic Teams for the 2025 season. The men finished the fall semester with a 3.66 GPA while the women ended with a GPA of 3.57. It marked the 10th consecutive year that both the men's and women's teams were honored as All-Academic teams.

Golf
 
The Cowboys were honored with President's Special Recognition from the Golf Coaches Association of America. The men's golf team's cumulative GPA of 3.77 for the year was the highest among UW's sports programs. Brody Leid and Kristof Panke were Cobalt Golf All-American Scholar honorees.
 
Three Cowgirls – Kiley Reisner, Kira Reisner and Elle Higgins – were named to the Women's Golf Coaches Association All-American Scholar Team. Honorees were required to have a 3.50 GPA or higher and have played in at least 50% of the team's competitive rounds. The trio led the program to its first postseason appearance where UW won the National Golf Invitational.
 
Soccer
 
Six Cowgirls – Kiley Ballek, Haley Bartel, Lily Brongo, Alisa Bunn, Alyssa Glover and Eliza-Grace Smith – were chosen as Academic All-District honorees by the College Sports Communicators. In order to qualify, a student-athlete must be a sophomore or older, possess a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher and have played in 90% of their team's games or started 50% of the games.
 
Swimming & diving
 
The Cowboys and Cowgirls were named Scholar All-America Teams while six Pokes were Individual Scholar All-Americans, announced by the College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA). The men finished with a 3.54 GPA in the spring and the women posted a 3.74 GPA in the spring. Individuals with First-Team honors were Macey Hansen, Tara Joyce, Simon Casey and Jackson Kogler with Natalie Six and Bruno Grau earning second-team honors.
 
Tennis
 
For the 14^th time under head coach Dean Clower, the Cowgirls were named an Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic Team. In addition, seven Cowgirls – Serina Abriola, Violetta Borodina, Silver Bijlsma, Eugenia Ceinos, Anastasiia Kochelaevskaia, Dilnaz Mashabayeva and Madlena Orlova – were named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
 
Track & field
 
Four UW student-athletes and both teams earned All-Academic honors by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) for the 2025-26 indoor and outdoor track and field seasons. Elayna Chafee, Taliah Morris, Ryker Holtzen and Charles LaFore were selected individually. The Cowboys finished with a 3.22 GPA while the Cowgirls earned a 3.46 GPA in the 2025-26 school year.
 
Volleyball
 
For the 18^th consecutive season, the Cowgirls were named to the AVCA Team Academic Award. UW posted a GPA of 3.51 in 2025-26 while Paige Lauterwasser, a two-time all-Mountain West performer on the court, was named to the CSC Academic All-District Team. The Cowgirls also had 12 on the Academic All-Mountain West Team.
 
Women's basketball
 
UW was honored as a WBCA Academic Top 25 special mention program for the 2025-26 academic year after compiling a team GPA of 3.53. Four Cowgirls were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team, while 13 were named to the Academic All-Mountain West Team.
 
Wrestling
 
Three Pokes – Sefton Douglass, Jared Hill and Riley Davis – were named Academic All-District honorees by the College Sports Communicators. In order to qualify, a student-athlete must be a sophomore or older, have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher and have competed in at least 75% of the team's competitions or the conference championships. The Cowboys concluded a memorable season with a 7-1 record in Big 12 duals and finished 12^th at the NCAA Championships.
 
Follow Ryan for more stories on Wyoming athletics on X at @By_RyanThorburn on Facebook at Wyoming Athletics and Instagram at wyoathletics. Also follow him at Pokes Insider at Gowyo.com/pokesinsider.
 
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