FRISCO, Texas – UIW’s Griffin Neal and Lamar's Nia Clatworthy are the Southland Conference Cross Country Student-Athletes of the Year, the league announced Friday. This marks Neal's third straight year earning the honor, while it's Clatworthy's second.

Neal is a senior at UIW and held a 3.67 grade point average, majoring in business administration. The first team all-Southland honoree earned runner of the week honor once this season and finished third at the Southland Championships in New Orleans, where the UIW men’s team brought home the title. He had four top 10 finishes on the season and finished ninth at the 2024 NCAA South Central Regional Championship with a new 10K personal best. Neal was one of two Southland men’s cross country runners who qualified for the national championship.

Clatworthy, a senior majoring in economics at Lamar, earned a 3.87 GPA. She placed second at the 2024 Southland Conference individual championship and helped lead the Cardinals to the 2024 cross country team title. She earned first team all-conference honors, NCAA South Central All-Region honors and was named Southland Runner of the Week on October 2. She had three top three finishes in five meets.

Student-Athlete of the Year nominees must hold at least a 3.5 GPA and have completed in one semester of athletic competition at the nominating institution.