Abrantes, Cass Garner USTFCCCA All-Academic Honors

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Bridgewater State University graduating seniors Kiara Abrantes and Naomi Cass earned United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic honors for the 2026 women's track & field seasons.

A total of 919 Division III female student-athletes from across the nation earned USTFCCCA All-Academic honors. In order to qualify for All-Academic distinction, student athletes must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.30 on a 4.0 scale and have finished the indoor or outdoors seasons among the top 50 individuals listed on the descending order lists on TFRRS. In addition, any athletes not among the top 50, but who participated in the Indoor or Outdoor National Championships, are eligible.

A native if Somerset, Massachusetts, Abrantes checks in with a terrific 3.59 GPA as she officially graduated last month cum laude with a degree in mathematics and secondary education.

During the 2025-2026 indoor season, Abrantes established herself as a top-tier sprinter in both the region and the nation while setting school records in all three sprinting events. In the 400-meter dash, she ranked second in the East Region and fifth in all of Division III with a time of 55.24. She added a fourth-place regional and 22nd-place national ranking in the 60-meter dash (7.66), as well as a fifth-place regional and 22nd-place national finish in the 200-meter dash (24.66).

Abrantes garnered USTFCCCA First Team All-America honors with a fifth place finish in the 400 (55.58) at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships in Birmingham, Alabama.

Cass, who resides in Wesport, Massachusetts, recorded a terrific 3.624 undergrad GPA as she graduated magna summa cum laude this past May with a degree in elementary education.

During the 2026 outdoor track & field season, Cass ranked fifth in the East Region and 35th in all of Division III in the 10,000-meter run (36:02.48), as well as tenth in the East Region in the 5,000-meter run (17:32.41). She was also seventh in the East Region and 49th in Division III in the 5,000-meter run (17:24.49) during the winter indoor campaign as well as 14th in the 3,000-meter run (10:11.62), 28th in the mile (5:13.40#).

Abrantes and Cass both competed on the Bears' indoor 4x400-meter relay which ranked 11th in the East Region with a time of 4:16.31.

The Bridgewater State women's track & field squad also earned All-Academic Team distinction. The Bears, who are one of 219 women's teams from across the Division III landscape to garner the honor, posted an impressive team cumulative GPA of 3.46 through the spring 2026 semester.

In order to qualify for All-Academic distinction, teams must have a cumulative GPA of 3.1 on a 4.0 scale, including the most recent grading period..

USTFCCCA 2026 NCAA Division III Women's Track & Field All-Academic Teams

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