EVANSVILLE, Ind.—University of Southern Indiana Women’s Track & Field freshman Hadessah Austin has, once again, been recognized by the Ohio Valley Conference for her efforts on the track. Austin was named the OVC co-Female Track Athlete of the Week as well as the OVC Freshman of the Week in an announcement by the league office Wednesday afternoon.
It marks the third and fourth time this semester that Austin has earned an OVC weekly award after she was named OVC Freshman of the Week and OVC co-Track Athlete of the Week during the indoor season.
Austin finished fourth out of 99 competitors in the 10,000 meters last Thursday as she broke a USI rookie record with her time of 34 minutes, 30.10 seconds. It was the first-time in her career that Austin has competed in the 10,000 meters and she broke former mark of 35:17.31, which was set by former USI All-American Emily Roberts at the 2015 Mt. SAC Relays.
It is the third USI freshman record that Austin has broken this year after she set new rookie marks in the 3,000 meters and the 5,000 meters during the indoor season. Her 10,000-meter time Thursday ranks fourth all-time at USI and is the best in the Ohio Valley Conference by more than two minutes during the early portion of the outdoor campaign.
The Screaming Eagles return to action Friday and Saturday when they compete at the Eastern Illinois University Big Cat Classic in Charleston, Illinois. USI was originally slated to compete at the Joey Haines Invitational but altered their schedule due to the inclement forecast in the Cape Girardeau, Missouri, area.
