Suwanee, Ga. (August 14) -- MIT cross country/track and field graduate Matthew Kearney (Austin, Texas) has been named as the Division III Commissioners Association (DIIICA) Region II Student-Athlete of the Year. Each of the 10 regional winners now advance to the national ballot for consideration for the DIIICA Men's Sport Student-Athlete of the Year.
 
Named as the NEWMAC Male Student-Athlete of the Year, Kearney helped lead the Engineers to NCAA National Championships in both men's cross country and men's outdoor track and field in 2022-23. A USTFCCCA All-American performer in cross country, indoor track and field and outdoor track and field last season, he was awarded a 2023 Rhodes Scholarship and was named as the 2023 College Sports Communicators (CSC) Men's Cross Country/Track and Field Division III Team Member of the Year.
 
Kearney finished his athletic career for the Engineers as a four-time All-American, a 15-time USTFCCCA All-Region performer and an eight-time NCAA national qualifier between cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field. He graduated from MIT with a Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering & computer science and philosophy, followed by a Master's degree in electrical engineering & computer science.
 
Overall, the two-time CSC Academic All-America performer finished his MIT career with a perfect 5.0 cumulative grade point average (on the MIT 5.0 grading scale).
 
Conferences were permitted to submit two nominations for each award if at least one of the nominations was an international student/ethnic minority. Selection criteria for the award included considerations based on academic achievement, athletics excellence, service and leadership and a personal statement submitted by each nominee.
 
The national winner will be announced later this month.
 
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