Oren and Ellis Named High-Point Scorers for DII Championships

NEW ORLEANS – Competing amongst the best-of-the-best at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships, no two athletes stood out more in Bradenton, Florida, than did Emily Oren of Hillsdale and Burkheart Ellis, Jr., of Saint Augustine’s

Oren and Ellis earned women’s and men’s High Point Scorer awards, respectively, from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) for their efforts at the IMG Academy on May 26-28.

Oren scored 26 points over the course of three distance events to lead all scorers regardless of gender, while Ellis won the 200, finished runner-up at 100 meters and ran a leg of the winning 4×100 relay for a combined 20.5 points.

Oren, a senior from Holland, Michigan, outscored the next-best woman – Heavin Warner of Central Missouri – by four points.

She first won the steeplechase final Friday night in 10:06.75 before coming back on Saturday to get another title at 1500 meters in 4:20.61 and a third-place showing at 5000 meters in 16:37.41.

Ellis, a senior from Raleigh, North Carolina, outscored the Academy of Art duo of Mobolade Ajomale and Valentin Pepiot by 6.5 points each.

He opened the final day of competition with a leg of the winning 4×100 relay, and then finished as the national runner-up at 100 meters in 10.17. He closed his weekend with a national title at 200 meters in 20.46.