Carr and Carlson are Selected for NWC Scholar-Athlete First Team Honors

SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University student-athletes Hazel Carr ('19, Seattle, WA/The Northwest School) and Keith Carlson ('19, Bainbridge Island, WA/Bainbridge HS) have been named to the Northwest Conference Scholar-Athlete First Team for the 2018-19 athletic year.

The award goes to the top male and female student-athlete from each NWC member college and university based on athletic success, academic accomplishments and community service.

Carr competed on the women's cross country and women's track and field teams. Carlson was a member of the men's cross country and men's track and field teams. Both student-athletes participated for four years on each team.

NWC Scholar-Athlete First Team

Hazel Carr ('19) was one of Willamette's NWC Scholar-Athlete First Team honorees this year. She excelled in cross country and as a distance runner on the track and field team.

In cross country, she competed at the NCAA Championships in 2015 and participated in the NCAA West Regional all four years. She helped Willamette place 10th in the nation at the 2015 NCAA Championships. Carr's career-best time in a 6-kilometer race was 23:01.1 at the 2018 West Regional, allowing her to finish in 21st place while earning All-West Region recognition.

Carr contributed to Willamette's team title at the 2018 NWC Championships, as she placed 13th and received Second Team All-NWC honors. She ran for WU at the NWC Championships in 2015 and 2016 to help the Bearcats place second both years in the team standings.

As a track and field athlete, Carr was named All-NWC after placing second in the women's 1,500-meter run at the 2019 NWC Championships. She was seventh in the NWC in the 800-meter run in 2019 and was eighth in the 1,500 in 2016 and 2017.

She set a personal record time of 4:47.70 in the 1,500 at the 2019 NWC meet.  Her top time for the Bearcats in the 800 was 2:22.26 at the 2018 Willamette Invitational.

Carr completed a bachelor's degree at Willamette this spring with a major in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. She registered a 3.53 cumulative grade point average. She was named to the USTFCCCA All-Academic Team in cross country during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.

As a student at WU, Carr received a Willamette Green Fund grant to study noise pollution and its effects on birdsong. She also led weekly birding walks on campus, and was a speaker at the Salem Audobon Club Birder's Night. During the summer of 2018, she worked at a wildlife rehabilitation center in Merville, British Columbia (Canada).

Keith Carlson ('19) also received NWC Scholar-Athlete First Team recognition for Willamette. Earlier this year, he was selected as a co-winner of the J.H. Booth Award as one of two senior male student-athletes who most excelled in all areas of his career at Willamette by exemplifying and demonstrating outstanding leadership, scholarship and athleticism.

This spring, Carlson placed 13th at the 2019 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 5,000-meter run. He qualified for the NCAA Championships with a school record time of 14:27.27 at the Portland Twilight on May 3. He is fourth on Willamette's all-time list in the 5,000.

In track and field he was First Team All-NWC in the 5,000-meter run in 2019 when he won the NWC title and was First Team All-NWC in the 10,000-meter run with a second place finish in 2018. He was named All-West Region in the 5,000 this year when his top time ranked third in the region.

As a cross country athlete, Carlson competed at the NCAA Championships three times. In the fall of 2018, he placed 47th out of 280 runners. He made up about 160 places after getting caught in a pile-up of numerous athletes 600 meters into the race.

He qualified for First Team All-NWC honors in cross country twice by taking second place at the NWC Championships in 2017 and 2018. He was named Second Team All-NWC in cross country in 2015 (10th place) and 2016 (8th place).

Carlson graduated from Willamette with a bachelor's degree and a double major in Computer Science and Mathematics. He earned a 3.54 cumulative GPA. He has received a full-tuition scholarship plus expenses for graduate studies in computer science at George Washington University. He was named to the USTFCCCA All-Academic Team twice in cross country (2017 and 2018) and once in track and field (2019).

While attending WU, Carlson was a tutor for the Computer Science Department. He also served as a tutor for the Willamette Learning Commons. He volunteered with several of his teammates a Minto Island Growers.