Emily Oren, a senior track & field athlete from Hillsdale College, was named the 2016 Honda DII Athlete of the Year as announced by Executive Director Chris Voelz of THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) presented by Honda.
The CWSA is celebrating 40 years of “the best of the best in collegiate athletics” and Oren will be presented with this honor on a live telecast on CBS Sports Network on June 27, 2016, (6 pm PT /9 pm EST) in the Founders’ Room at the Galen Center on the campus of the University of Southern California in downtown Los, Angeles.
The honor was voted on by national balloting among 1,000 NCAA member schools as part of THE CWSA program, now in its 40th year.
Oren was named the 2015 Division II Athlete of the Year by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) and was the Regional Athlete of the Year for the fourth consecutive time, including indoor and outdoor seasons. She is expected to take home the top honors again this season.
At the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championship, she scored 26 points over the course of three distance events to lead all scorers regardless of gender. She captured two national titles winning the steeplechase and the 1500 meters to close her career with seven individual national championships and two as part of the indoor distance medley relay team.
At the 2016 Indoor Championship she captured the title in the mile setting a new Division II record and went on to win the GLIAC championship in the 3000 meter steeplechase this spring with an Olympic-standard time of 9:50.54, eclipsing her own school record.
Oren is a 12-time USTFCCCA All-American between cross country and track, and helped lead her team to be named the USTFCCCA Program of the Year, the highest honor that can go to an institution covering one academic year. She hails from Hamilton, Michigan.
“Emily Oren personifies a Hillsdale College student-athlete,“ said head coach Andrew Towne. “But, what separates her is her drive...she was truly committed to excellence throughout her career at Hillsdale- and that is why many consider her to be the greatest female distance runner in Div. II history. We couldn't be more proud of her.”
THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards has honored the nation’s top NCAA women athletes for 40 years, recognizing superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. Since commencing its sponsorship in 1986, Honda has provided more than $3.0 million in institutional grants to the universities of the award winners and nominees to support women’s athletics programs at the institutions.