For Immediate Release
Saturday, November 5, 2022
NSIC Media Relations

BURNSVILLE, Minn. – Northern State’s Jackson Harrison was voted by the league coaches as the winner of the NSIC Men’s Cross Country Outstanding Senior of the Year Award.  A native of Aberdeen, South Dakota, Harrison holds a 3.38 grade point average after obtaining his undergraduate degree and is now pursuing a business degree and plans to attend dental school.  Harrison was presented the award following the NSIC Cross Country Championships, which took place on Saturday, Oct. 23 in Wayne, Nebraska.  He took seventh at the event to earn All-NSIC First Team honors. 
 
The “NSIC Outstanding Senior of the Year Award” is presented to a NSIC men’s cross country student-athlete who participates at their institution for four years and is academically superior while making a positive contribution to their team and the University. The NSIC Outstanding Senior of the Year award was initiated in 2020-21 to honor an outstanding senior that exemplifies the attributes of the model NSIC student-athlete.
 
Harrison is a two-time All-NSIC performer in cross country and holds the honor seven more times in track & field.  He is a two-time NSIC Men's Cross Country Athlete of the Week this season. He won three events over the year and was fifth at the Roy Griak as the top NSIC performer. 

In the community, Harrison has volunteered at the Salvation Army Bell-Ringing, Residence Hall Move-In, NSU Athletics Worker, Science Club and Golden Ticket Manager.  

“Jackson's commitment to his team, the campus, and the community is superior. Not only is he an excellent athlete, but he also prioritizes his academics. His positive influence on those around him is contagious and will continue within the team's culture for a very long time,” said Head Coach Megan Kuehl. 

About the NSIC
The NSIC is a 16-team, 18-sport, NCAA Division II conference with institutions located in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The NSIC is a model Division II conference that uses high-level athletics competition to develop champions in the classroom and community while empowering student-athletes to be impactful and positive leaders. Formed in 1992 by the merger of the Northern Intercollegiate Conference (men’s league) and the Northern Sun Conference (women’s league), the NSIC has flourished over the past quarter century, maturing into a 16-team union of Upper Midwest colleges and universities. The NSIC has won 25 team national championships and crowned 96 individual national champions. For additional information, visit NorthernSun.org.

About NCAA Division II
The NCAA, the national governing body for college athletics, is a volunteer association of more than 1,000 colleges and universities that classify their athletics programs in one of three membership divisions. The 300+ institutions in NCAA Division II support a balanced approach in which student-athletes have the opportunity to earn scholarships based on their athletic ability, pursue their desired academic degree, and participate in all the campus and surrounding community have to offer. Division II student-athletes annually graduate at rates higher than their student body peers, and they have access to the best championships-participant ratio among the NCAA’s three divisions. Division II gives student-athletes the unique opportunity to compete in the classroom, on the field, in their career, for their causes, and on their terms. For additional information, visit NCAA.org.