SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) has announced Plattsburgh State women's cross country junior Grace Estus (Clifton Park, N.Y. / Shenendehowa) as the 2025 SUNYAC Women's Cross Country Scholar Athlete of the Year. This award is nominated and voted on by the conference sports information directors.

This season, Estus was awarded the prestigious SUNYAC Elite 20 Award, recognizing excellence both academically and athletically. She also earned SUNYAC Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week honors on Sept. 15 after capturing first place at the SUNYAC Preview with a time of 23:52.0. The Clifton Park, N.Y. native consistently led the Cardinals this season, finishing as the team's top runner in three races, highlighted by her victory at the SUNYAC Preview. In her first SUNYAC Championship, Estus narrowly missed out on All-SUNYAC honors, placing 17th overall while recording a personal-best time of 23:34.8 in the six-kilometer race—marking the fastest performance of her collegiate career.

In order to be eligible for the SUNYAC Scholar Athlete of the Year award, student-athletes must prove both academic and athletic excellence by obtaining a minimum 3.30 overall GPA, be a starter or significant reserve for their team, and be at least a sophomore. The SUNYAC Scholar Athlete Award began in 2016-17.

Estus is the first Plattsburgh State women's cross country athlete to win this distinction. She has a cumulative GPA of 4.0 as an English major and was named to the SUNYAC Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (2024-25) and EAST-COMM Academic Honor Roll (2024-25).