NEW ORLEANS— Hillsdale distance runner Emily Oren and Findlay thrower Justin Welch captured their second U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) awards on Tuesday morning.

DIVISION II MEN – Justin Welch, Findlay 

Senior | Luckey, Ohio

Welch won the Penn Relays hammer for the second straight year. Here’s how impressive Welch’s career has been since transferring from Georgia to Findlay: if he were anyone else, his winning mark of 68.34m (224-2) at Penn would make him the seventh best hammer thrower in DII history. But it’s only the thirteenth best mark of the last two years for Welch. He also competed in the discus and hammer at Penn.

DIVISION II WOMEN – Emily Oren, Hillsdale

Junior | Holland, Michigan

Oren won the 1500 in 4:18.16 on her home track at the Gina Relays. That’s the ninth fastest in-season time (seventh fastest performer) in Division II history, and six seconds faster than her old personal best–set just last week. In addition to setting a huge PB, Oren smoked a large field of Division I and professional runners. She won by nearly five seconds, and now has the fastest time in DII this year.