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34 CAVALIER CORNER cavalier profile WILL ANTHONY Third-Year • Cross Country Will Anthony is not your average third-year student at the University of Virginia. The New Zealand native holds a 4.0 cumulative grade-point average with a double major in physics and mathematics, all while garnering All-America and All-ACC athletic honors. He finds the challenges in the classroom parallel to the challenges of college athletics. "The competitiveness that helps me in my running is also really helpful academically," Anthony said. "[It's] more competing with myself and being like, 'OK, what do I need to do to get an A-plus rather than an A? What do I need to do to maintain a 4.0 [GPA]? That really drives me. I'll fight for every percent, every 0.1 of a percent." Fighting for every percent proved important when An- thony finished in the top three in the 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter events at the 2024 ACC Outdoor Track And Field Championships, helping Virginia to the ACC team title. During the 2023 cross country season, Anthony was the Cavaliers' top finisher at the NCAA Championships, with a 61st-place finish for the 10,000-meter race. In the classroom, he has tackled the rigors of quantum physics and advanced calculus with excitement, going two-for-two on All-ACC Aca- demic team selections and earning CSC Academic All-America honors last season. Only having visited on a few vacations, Anthony settled on making the cross- world move from New Zealand to the U.S. for the elite running competition and ath- letic resources present at American univer- sities, as well as the academic opportunities. "I love my studies," Anthony said. "I love physics and mathematics. The opportunities for that over here are much greater than back home. "I find that studying … is a really good way to take my mind off running. On the flip side, when I'm out running … I don't have to worry about a homework assignment that's due that night. So, they feed into each other quite nicely." The combination of his teammates and professors has created a supportive environment in which Anthony has proven to thrive as a student-athlete. Athletically, he is focused on winning the "triple crown" — an ACC team title for Virginia in each of cross country, indoor track and out- door track as well as bringing home the individual title at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in November. Academically, he looks to maintain his perfect GPA as well as take a few master's level classes in physics to build up a foundation for graduate school. "I think the sky's the limit for Will and I'm excited to see just how far he can go this year," Virginia director of track and field and cross country Vin Lananna said. — Jen Dietrich • Photo courtesy UVA Athletics