EUGENE, Oregon — Rushana Dwyer wrapped up Northwestern State’s competition at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships by earning honorable mention All-American honors Thursday night at the University of Oregon’s Hayward Field.
Running the 400 meter dash, Dwyer, a senior from St. Eliizabeth, Jamaica, finished sixth in the first heat with her 51.77 time, which wound up in 18th place, two slots away from second-team All-America status. Two of the top three times came from the first heat, led by Georgia’s Dejanea Oakley, who ran 49.93, the only finish under the 50-second mark.The top nine out of three eight-woman heats qualified for Saturday’s championship final.
Three of the top four finishers and four of the top six were occupied by athletes from SEC schools, including a pair of Arkansas runners – one being Sanaria Butler, who transferred last summer from Northwestern to Arkansas. She ran in the lane next to Dwyer in Heat 1 and had the third-fastest qualifying time, 50.53.
Dwyer finishes her NSU career with a part of three school records, including two individual records, the indoor and outdoor 400-meter dash. She also won a pair of 400 Southland Conference gold medals, outrunning Southeastern Louisiana’s Onyah Onyinye Favour both times. Thursday, Favour placed eighth with a flat 51.00. She is the only non-power conference school athlete to make Saturday’s finals.