NEW ORLEANS – Graduate students Aislyn McDonough (Rouses Point, N.Y./Northeastern Clinton) and Kaitlyn Bjelko (Plattsburgh, N.Y./Beekmantown), senior Janyll Barber (Dannemora, N.Y./Saranac) and first-year student Marissa LeDuc (Saranac, N.Y./Saranac) of the Plattsburgh State women's track and field team have been named as 2023 U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field All-Mideast Region honorees, as announced Friday by the USTFCCCA.
 
The top-five individuals in each event from each region earned All-Region distinction in addition to each member of the region's top-three relay teams. The regions used for this award—East, Great Lakes, Metro, Mid-Atlantic, Mideast, Midwest, Niagara, North, South and West—match those used during the cross country season.
 
McDonough earns her first outdoor All-Region honor after a season in which she ranked third in region in the 800-meter run. Her time of 2:14.64 that she achieved at the Widener Final Qualifier on May 14 served as her fastest time of the season, and she also was the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) champion in the event, earning First-Team All-SUNYAC recognition.
 
Bjelko receives her first outdoor All-Region plaudit after a year in which she ranked third in the region in the shot put. Her season-best mark came at the SUNYAC Outdoor Championships on May 5, as she recorded an attempt of 12.71 meters (41' 8.5").
 
For the fourth time in her career, Barber can call herself an All-Region honoree, as she also earned the honor in 2022 (400-meter hurdles), 2021 (400-meter hurdles) and 2019 (400-meter hurdles, 4x400-meter relay). Barber currently leads the region in the 400-meter hurdles, as she clocked a program-record time of 1:00.70 at the SUNYAC Outdoor Championships on May 5. Her time also ranks sixth in NCAA Division III. Barber earned Second-Team All-SUNYAC honors as well this spring, as she finished second in the 400-meter hurdles at the SUNYAC Outdoor Championships.
 
LeDuc earns her first outdoor All-Region accolade, as she ranked fifth in the region in the heptathlon. Her best heptathlon score of the year came at the All-Atlantic Region Track and Field Conference (AARTFC) Outdoor Championships from May 17-18, as she registered a score of 3,748 points.
 
Barber is the lone Cardinal in a position to qualify for the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships, with selections expected to be announced later this evening. If selected, Barber would compete in the 400-meter hurdles prelims on Thursday, May 25, at 6:20 p.m., and if she finishes prelims in the top eight, she advances to the final on Saturday, May 27, at 3:25 p.m.