2016 NCAA DII Indoor National Athletes of the Year Announced

NEW ORLEANS – Following the 2016 NCAA Division II Indoor Championships this past weekend in Pittsburg, Kansas, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced Wednesday this season’s National Athletes of the Year, as voted on by the coaches.

Lamar Hargrove of Tiffin and Emily Oren of Hillsdale were named the Men’s and Women’s Track Athletes of the Year, respectively, while Jeron Robinson of Texas A&M-Kingsville and Salcia Slack of New Mexico Highlands were honored as Men’s and Women’s Field Athletes of the Year, respectively.

Hargrove, a junior from Cincinnati, Ohio, may not have pulled off a third consecutive streak of the 60- and 200-meter national titles, but he led his team to something even more historic: it’s first indoor national team title in program history.

With a win at 200 meters, a runner-up finish at 60 meters, and a leg of the national-title-clinching runner-up 4×400 relay, Hargrove scored 20 points to earn co-high scorer honors at the meet. His 20.81 to win the 200 crown was a new NCAA Division II all-time record, and he covered 60 meters in 6.66 for eight more points. He ran the second leg of the 4×400 relay that ultimately won the first of four sections and held on to finish second overall.

During the regular season he won a pair of GLIAC titles at 60 and 200 meters.

Oren, a senior from Holland, Michigan, is the Women’s Track Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive season. She accounted for 22½ of Hillsdale’s runner-up 58 points, including three national titles in the mile, 3000 and as part of the winning distance medley relay.

She surpassed not only the meet record but also the all-time Division II record in the mile, running 4:35.48 to top Emilee Trost of Minnesota Duluth by two seconds. She followed that up with a 9:27.98 over 3000 meters to lead a 1-2-4 Hillsdale effort in the event.

She won titles in the same events at the GLIAC Championships during the regular season.

Robinson, a senior from Houston, Texas, finished the indoor season as arguably the top collegiate high jumper in the country, regardless of division. His regular season clearance of 2.29m (7-6) tied him with Texas Tech’s Bradley Adkins for the collegiate lead, and put him at No. 2 on the all-time DII list.

At the NCAA Championships, Robinson made quick work of the field, clearing 2.16m (7-1) on his first attempt to clinch the win and then making 2.21m (7-3) on his second. He then raised the ball all the way to a 2.31m (7-7) height that would have made him the sole collegiate leader and DII record holder, but alas he missed on all three attempts.

He finished his 2016 indoor campaign undefeated against DII competition in five tries, with four wins and a runner-up finish overall.

Slack, a senior from the Bahamas, made the most of her final collegiate meet. With 23 points, she rode off into the sunset as the Championships’ highest scorer, getting wins in the pentathlon and triple jump while also finishing sixth in the long jump.

Her 4172 points in the pentathlon was 273 points clear of the runner-up and just shy of the DII Championships record. She was similarly dominant in the triple jump, leaping 12.88m (42-3¼ ) to win by more than a foot with three jumps that would have won the event.

During the regular season, she scored a massive 53 points at the RMAC Championships including wins in the pentathlon and the triple jump, a third-place finish in the shot put, a fifth-place effort in the shot put, and a sixth-place showing in the long jump.