NEW ORLEANS — What do you get when you mix eight national leaders with two division records and a whole lot of action? The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) National Athletes of the Week.
This past weekend saw athletes begin to fight for conference and region bragging rights and it brought the best out of them. Here are those eight NCAA and NJCAA athletes who stood out the most from this past weekend’s happenings.
Hillsdale senior sensation Emily Oren earned NCAA Division II Athlete of the Week accolades following an all-time D2 record-breaking performance in the steeplechase.
NCAA DIVISION II WOMEN — Emily Oren, Hillsdale
Senior | Distance
Holland, Michigan
No one in the history of NCAA Division II track & field has any woman run the 3000-meter steeplechase faster than did Emily Oren at this weekend’s GLIAC Championships. The reigning NCAA Champ navigated the barriers and water pits in 9:50.54, taking the title over her sister Molly by 31 seconds and extending her national lead over Molly to nearly 24 seconds.
She bettered the previous record of 9:53.85 — set by Betsy Graney of GLIAC rival Grand Valley State in 2012 — by more than three seconds for her third career sub-10:00 performance, more than anyone else in DII history. It is her second such effort this season, matching Alicia Nelson of Adams State (2014) for the most in one season. Dating back to last season, Oren now owns five of the nine fastest times in DII history.
For good measure, she added 10 more points with a win over 5000 meters in 16:48.66 by nearly 14 seconds over reigning national 10,000-meter champion Amy Cymerman of Grand Valley State.
