Frostburg State Athletic Hall of Fame
1994-1998
Women's Track & Field
Women's Cross Country
Inducted October 19, 2012
171st Inductee
Karen Carpenter was a three-time All-American, 19-time all-conference selection and captured two school records as part of the Frostburg State cross country and track & field programs.
In cross country, Carpenter was a two-time All-American, two-time conference champion and was the 1997 NCAA South/Southeast Region Champion. As a member of the track & field team, Carpenter holds outdoor records in the 5,000 (17:33.86) and 10,000-meter runs (36:39.28), was a nine-time Mason-Dixon Conference Champion (track & field) and 19-time All-Mason-Dixon Conference selection (track & field).
As a senior in 1997-98, Carpenter earned All-American honors in cross country after finishing fourth at the national championships. She was also cross country champion of the NCAA South/Southeast Region, Mason-Dixon Conference and Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. She was the Mason-Dixon Conference Champion in both the 5,000 and 10,000-meter runs and was voted FSU's Most Outstanding Female Senior Athlete and the Track & Field Most Valuable Athlete.
As a junior in 1996-97, Carpenter earned a pair of All-American honors after finishing fourth at the NCAA Cross Country Championships and seventh in the 10,000-meter run at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
That same year, she finished runner-up in cross country at both the Mason-Dixon Conference Championships and the NCAA South/Southeast Regional Championships. She set school records in both the 5,000 (17:33.86) and 10,000-meter runs (36:39.28) and earned Mason-Dixon Conference Championships in the 1,500, 3,000 and 5,000-meter runs. She was voted the Most Outstanding Female Athlete at the Mason-Dixon Outdoor Championships.
During her sophomore year, she earned Mason-Dixon Conference titles in the 3,000, 5,000 and 10,000-meter runs and was voted Outstanding Female Athlete of the Meet of the Mason-Dixon Conference Championships. She went on to win the 10,000-meter run at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional meet.
