COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Colorado State University Pueblo track and field standout Katherine Higgins has been named the 2024-25 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the conference announced Tuesday. The prestigious honor adds to an already remarkable postseason for Higgins, who captured a national title in the shot put while excelling both academically and athletically throughout the year.

A native of Mead, Colorado, Higgins delivered a remarkable senior campaign, excelling during both the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons. She not only earned multiple national and conference accolades, but also distinguished herself academically, earning RMAC Academic Athlete of the Year honors for both seasons.

Higgins opened her championship season with a standout performance at the 2025 RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships, capturing the shot put title with a throw of 15.42 meters and finishing fifth in the weight throw at 16.91 meters. She carried that momentum into the 2025 NCAA Division II Indoor Championships, where she earned a national silver medal with a mark of 15.78 meters in the shot put.

Her outdoor season was equally dominant, as she repeated as the RMAC champion in the shot put with a throw of 16.22 meters and added a silver medal in the discus (44.07 meters). She saved her best for the Division II Outdoor Championships, where she claimed a national title in the shot put with a collegiate-best throw of 16.38 meters.

Over the course of the year, Higgins amassed an impressive list of accolades, including three RMAC Championship medals, two Academic Athlete of the Year distinctions (Indoor and Outdoor), two First Team All-RMAC nods, and the 2024-25 RMAC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year award.

The RMAC Male & Female Scholar-Athlete Awards are the highest academic honors bestowed by the conference. A student-athlete must have completed at least two academic terms at a member institution while maintaining a 3.50 cumulative grade-point average and participated in an RMAC-sponsored championship sport.

Higgins will be honored at the 2025 RMAC Hall of Fame Ceremony and Awards Banquet on Thursday, July 10, at the Colorado Springs Marriott. Doors will open at 5 p.m. MT, and the induction and awards ceremony will follow promptly at 6 p.m. Tickets are available at RMACSports.org/Tickets.

Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year Honorable Mention:
Lauren Ocampo, Adams State; Makayla Dannelly, Black Hills State; Aubree Heinsma, Chadron State; Shannon King, Colorado Christian; Sabrina VanDeList, Colorado Mesa; Jenna Ramsey-Rutledge, Colorado School of Mines; Jaiden Geist, MSU Denver; Juliana Aragon, New Mexico Highlands; Madeline Schallmoser, Regis; Kiley Metzger, South Dakota Mines; Fie Steenberg, UCCS; Allison Beasley, Western Colorado.
 
About the RMAC
The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, headquartered in Colorado Springs, is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 institutions located in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Dakota, and Utah. The RMAC currently competes in 22 NCAA Division II sports and has earned 67 national championships and 53 national runners-up since 1992. Founded in 1909, the RMAC is the most historic athletic conference in the western United States and Division II.