2011-12 Track & Field News

Season
Willamette Track and Field Teams Receive All-Academic Honors
Willamette Track and Field Teams Receive All-Academic Honors

NEW ORLEANS, LA. -- The Willamette University men's and women's track and field teams have earned All-Academic honors from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) for the 2012 season.

Three Bearcats Earn All-Academic Honors in Track and Field
Three Bearcats Earn All-Academic Honors in Track and Field

NEW ORLEANS, LA. -- Three Willamette University track and field athletes have been chosen for the 2011-12 NCAA Division III All-Academic Teams as selected by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). The honors goes to student-athletes who have experienced both academic and athletic success.

Dinsmore Receives Fulbright Grant to Teach English in Colombia
Dinsmore Receives Fulbright Grant to Teach English in Colombia

SALEM, ORE. -- Former Willamette University track and field sprinter Jaela Dinsmore '12 (Hines, OR/Burns HS) has received a Fulbright Scholar grant. With the grant, Dinsmore plans to teach English in Colombia (South America) as she prepares for a career in bilingual education.

Chris Sabato Interviewed by Sam Borden of the New York Times
Chris Sabato Interviewed by Sam Borden of the New York Times

Salem, Ore. -- Chris Sabato, who has spent the past seven years at Willamette University as an assistant coach for both track and field and cross country, was interviewed by Sam Borden of the New York Times this past weekend. Borden tapped Sabato's knowledge of FinishLynx, the timing software used for the Olympic Trials at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Dinsmore is Selected First Team Capital One Academic All-America
Dinsmore is Selected First Team Capital One Academic All-America

SALEM, ORE. -- Willamette University sprinter Jaela Dinsmore (Sr., Hines, OR/Burns HS) have been named First Team Capital One Academic All-America on the 2011-12 NCAA Division III Women's Track & Field/Cross Country Team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Dinsmore and Edwards are Chosen First Team Capital One Academic All-District
Dinsmore and Edwards are Chosen First Team Capital One Academic All-District

SALEM, ORE. -- Willamette University athletes Jaela Dinsmore (Sr., Hines, OR/Burns HS) and Theresa Edwards (Jr., Lake Tapps, WA/Bonney Lake HS) have been chosen First Team Capital One Academic All-District VIII on the 2011-12 NCAA Division III Women's Track & Field/Cross Country Team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Winger is Selected First Team Capital One Academic All-District
Winger is Selected First Team Capital One Academic All-District

SALEM, ORE. -- Willamette University sprinter Paul Winger (Sr., Bonney Lake, WA/Bonney Lake HS) has been named First Team Capital One Academic All-District VIII on the 2011-12 NCAA Division III Men's Track & Field/Cross Country Team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Dinsmore Earns All-America Honors with 5th Place Finish in 100-Meter Dash
Dinsmore Earns All-America Honors with 5th Place Finish in 100-Meter Dash

CLAREMONT, CALIF. -- Senior sprinter Jaela Dinsmore (Hines, OR/Burns HS) from Willamette University finished in 5th place in the finals of the 100-meter dash with a personal record time of 11.95 seconds at the 2012 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Saturday, May 26. Dinsmore achieved All-America status by placing among the top eight runners.

Freeby Finishes 13th in 3,000-Meter Steeplechase at NCAA Championships
Freeby Finishes 13th in 3,000-Meter Steeplechase at NCAA Championships

CLAREMONT, CALIF. -- Willamette freshman Michaela Freeby (Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS) took 13th place in the finals of the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase on Saturday, May 26 at the 2012 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges. Freeby registered a time of 11:05.65 in the finals.

Dinsmore Earns NCAA Elite 89 Award in Track and Field
Dinsmore Earns NCAA Elite 89 Award in Track and Field

SALEM, ORE. -- Willamette University senior Jaela Dinsmore (Hines, OR/Burns HS) has received the NCAA Elite 89 Award in Division III women's outdoor track and field for the 2011-12 season. The Elite 89 Award is presented at each of the 89 NCAA national championship events to the competing student-athlete with the highest grade point average. 

Dinsmore Advances to 100-Meter Finals by .001 at NCAA Championships
Dinsmore Advances to 100-Meter Finals by .001 at NCAA Championships

CLAREMONT, CALIF. -- An athletic competition is often a game of inches, with winning and losing determined by the smallest of margins. For Willamette University senior sprinter Jaela Dinsmore (Hines, OR/Burns HS) the statement was true on Friday, May 25 at the 2012 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships, as she advanced to the finals of the 100-meter dash by just one one-thousandth of a second (.001).

Freeby Reaches Finals in 3,000-Meter Steeplechase at NCAA Championships
Freeby Reaches Finals in 3,000-Meter Steeplechase at NCAA Championships

CLAREMONT, CALIF. -- Michaela Freeby (Fr., Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS) of Willamette University set a personal record time in the preliminary heats of the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase to advance to the finals at the 2012 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Thursday, May 24.

Bearcats are Prepared for First Day of NCAA Track and Field Championships
Bearcats are Prepared for First Day of NCAA Track and Field Championships

CLAREMONT, CALIF. -- All five Willamette University athletes at the 2012 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be in action on Thursday, May 24, as the three-day national meet gets underway at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges.

Bearcats Once Again Maintain Rankings in West Region of NCAA Division III
Bearcats Once Again Maintain Rankings in West Region of NCAA Division III

SALEM, ORE. -- The men's and women's track and field teams from Willamette University continue to hold their regional positions for the fourth consecutive week in the latest rankings for the West Region of NCAA Division III, as released by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Five Bearcats Qualify for NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships
Five Bearcats Qualify for NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships

SALEM, ORE. -- Five Willamette University athletes have qualified to compete in a total of six events at the 2012 NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships, set for May 24-26 at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in Claremont, Calif. The top 22 women's athletes and the top 20 men's athletes in each event from throughout NCAA Division III were selected.

Dinsmore Sets Personal Record of 24.77 in 200-Meter Dash at Gregory Invitational
Dinsmore Sets Personal Record of 24.77 in 200-Meter Dash at Gregory Invitational

NAPERVILLE, ILL. -- Several times in the past few weeks, Willamette University sprinter Jaela Dinsmore (Sr., Hines, OR; Burns HS) has been forced to lower her time in the 100-meter dash or the 200-meter dash in order to keep herself in contention for a trip to the NCAA Division III Championships in one or both events. She has been succeeding in that quest.