ONEONTA, N.Y. - The Oneonta men's cross country/track & field team had six student-athletes recognized on the 2025-26 Academic All-District® Women's Track & Field / Cross Country Team, selected by College Sports Communicators (CSC) and announced on Tuesday. The award recognizes the nation's top student-athletes for their combined athletic and academic achievements.
The five Red Dragons honored were Justin Baldwin (Cato, NY/Cato-Meridian), Drew Obernesser (New City, NY/Clarkstown North), Noah Pickard (Batavia, NY/Batavia), Tom Pinkowski (Groton, NY/Groton), and Chris Schimkus (Massapequa, NY/Massapequa).
To be nominated, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.50 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) at her current institution. A limit of six nominations per team is set. In Track & Field / Cross Country, nominees must be ranked among the Top 50 in the region in at least one event (XC, indoor or outdoor).
Bladwin competed in the throwing events for Oneonta nd graduated with a 3.80 cumulative GPA in exercise science. He competed in 14 meets throughout the indoor and outdoor seasons.
Oberbesser finished with a 3.98 GPA in business administration. He placed seventh in the javelin at the SUNYAC Outdoor Championships at 41.10 meters.
Pickard competed in both cross country and track. He placed 85th at the NCAA Division III Regional Championships at 27:26.0. He then scored in the indoor 1,500-meter race with a fifth-place finish of 4:30.59. Pickard holds a 3.88 cumulative GPA in dietetics.
Pinkowski finished the year with a cumulative GPA of 3.79 in geography. He took second in the triple jump at the Cornell Southern Tier Invite at 12.46 meters.
Schimkus ran the cross country and track seasons and finished the year with a 3.70 GPA in professional accounting. He capped off the outdoor season with an All-SUNYAC Third Team performance in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at 9:46.68.
The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes track & field / cross country honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA. Select Academic All-District® honorees advance to the CSC Academic All-America® ballot. First-, second and third-team Academic All-America® honorees will be announced on July 15.
