Rose-Hulman's Evans Earns Runner-Up Honors at NCAA Indoor Nationals
Release courtesy of Rose-Hulman
GREENCASTLE, IN -- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology freshman Liz Evans (Bicknell/North Knox) earned national runner-up honors with an All-American performance at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field National Championships on Friday at DePauw University.
Evans was one of just two athletes to clear the 5' 6 1/2" mark to claim the first All-American honor in the history of Fightin' Engineer women's track and field. She also became the first Rose-Hulman female student-athlete to earn All-American honors in an individual sport.
Her finish in the first national runner-up finish in Rose-Hulman track and field since Andrew Schipper accomplished the feat in the men's pole vault in 2000. The effort also marks the best finish at any individual national championship since Matt Smith won a national championship in swimming in 2003.
"I thought I would be sad if I didn't finish first, but I'm actually pretty happy. I always want to come in better than my seeding, and I was happy to match the second seed with a second-place finish," said Evans.
Evans becomes the 36th All-American in the history of track and field at Rose-Hulman. She was also named the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Region Female Field Athlete of the Year by the National Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on Thursday.
"I was prepared very well for something that I knew would be a challenging competition. I'm proud to represent Rose-Hulman as our first women's All-American in an individual sport," said Evans.
La'shonda Carter of New Jersey City earned the national championship by clearing 5' 7 3/4" on her third attempt. Evans also became just the second female student-athlete in school history to earn All-American honors, joining soccer player Jennifer Gordon in 2007.
"We accomplished the goals that we set forth in jumping consistently throughout the season and preparing ourselves to compete at a high level at the national championships. I feel that we've accomplished both of those today, and this was a great capstone to the indoor season," said assistant coach Matthew Cole, who serves as the team's jumps coach.
Evans will return to the squad for the outdoor season, beginning with the Rose-Hulman Early Bird Meet next Saturday at the William Welch Track and Field Complex.
