WashU Women’s Track and Field Earns Second Outdoor National Championship in Program History

WashU Women’s Track and Field Earns Second Outdoor National Championship in Program History

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For the second time in program history, the top-ranked Washington University in St. Louis women's track and field team has lifted the NCAA Division III Outdoor team championship trophy in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina on Saturday. Senior Emma Kelley won three events (400-meter, 800-meter, and 4 x 400 relay) to highlight the final day of competition. 
 
WashU's first outdoor track and field national championship came in 2017. Today's NCAA Championship marks the 25th in WashU history. 
Battling through multiple weather delays, the Bears won the team title with 71 points. University of Wisconsin-La Crose (47.5 points) took second, while Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (47 points) finished third. 
 
Saturday's Top Finishers: 

400 Meters (Final): 
  • NATIONAL CHAMPION! 
  • Senior Emma Kelley set a personal-best mark and broke her own program record en route to earning yet another national championship, this time in the 400-meter event 
  • Kelley crossed the finish line with a time of 53.73 
  • Kelley won the event by .42 seconds to claim her fourth title in her career  
  • Kelley earned 10 team points for the Bears 
800 Meters (Final): 
  • BACK-TO-BACK NATIONAL CHAMPION! 
  • In the span of a half hour, Emma Kelley won her second individual title of the day 
  • Kelley, who produced the top time in Division III, won by 2.23 seconds with her winning time of 2:06.02 
  • Kelley welcomed her fifth title with the win 
    • Kelley also won the 800-meter event in 2023
  • Graduate student Danielle Schultz turned in a personal-best time of 2:08.244 to haul in a runner-up finish 
  • The one-two finish for WashU earned the Bears 18 team points 
4 x 400 Relay (Final): 
  • NATIONAL CHAMPIONS! 
  • The 4 x 400 relay team of sophomore Kylie Spytek, Danielle Schultz, first year Cate Christopher, and Emma Kelley won the event with a time of 3:44.69 
  • The team won by .08 seconds as MIT took runner-up, running to a time of 3:44.77 
  • The win marked the first ever 4 x 400 relay national championship in program history 
  • The team earned 10 team points for the Bears 
1,500 Meters (Final): 
  • ALL-AMERICAN! 
  • Senior Ally Sarussi generated a third-place finish in the 1,500-meter race as she turned in a time of 4:28.74 
  • Sarussi earned six team points for the Bears 
100 Meters (Final): 
  • ALL-AMERICAN 
  • Sophomore Jasmine Wright turned in a time of 11.99 to take third in the 100-meter race 
  • Wright was just .29 off of the top time 
  • Wright earned six team points for the Bears 
4 x 100 Relay (Final): 
  • ALL-AMERICANS! 
  • The 4 x 100 relay team of first year Maya Davis, Kylie Spytek, junior Lauren Gay, and Jasmine Wright finished fourth with a time of 46.63 
  • The team earned five team points for the Bears 
Triple Jump (Final): 
  • ALL-AMERICAN! 
  • In her second jump of the evening, senior Ebun Opata landed a jump of 12.38m 
  • Opata's leap gave her a fifth-place finish in the event 
  • Opata earned four team points for the Bears 
5,000 Meters (Final): 
  • Senior Alexandra Blake notched a time of 17:31.17 to register an 18th-place finish 

WashU All-Time Top-10 Marks from Saturday: 

400 Meters: 
  • Emma Kelley – PROGRAM RECORD – 53.76 (broke her previous program record from April 13, 2024) 
800 Meters: 
  • Danielle Schultz – 3rd – 2:08.25