Make that two Athlete of the Year awards for Hannah Chappell-Dick (Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton). Eastern Mennonite University's middle distance runner has been named the South/Southeast Region Athlete of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field And Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
Chappell-Dick also claimed the honor from the indoor season before winning the silver medal in the mile at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Following the outdoor season, Chappell-Dick holds the top times in the region in both the 800m and the 1500m. She had the nation's ninth-fastest time in the 1500m during year at 4:30.97, which was also an Old Dominion Athletic Conference record. The All-American elected to run that distance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, which are this Thursday through Saturday in Canton, N.Y. She will take the No. 8 seed into the national meet, but feels she can still shave seconds off her time and challenge for another medal.
Chappell-Dick also had the fourth-fastest time in the nation in the 800m, running a 2:09.37. She won both events at the ODAC Championships last month, and won a combined five events and resulting All-ODAC First Team laurels from the indoor and outdoor seasons.
The junior won the regional award based on a vote by the USTFCCCA member coaches from the region.
Along with Chappell-Dick in the 1500m, the Royals are sending freshman Kat Lehman (Dover, Ohio/Dover) in the 5000m to the national meet. The preliminaries for the 1500m are at 3:45pm on Thursday, with the finals set for Saturday at 1:30pm. The 5000m has one race, which is Saturday at 4:05pm.
Click here for the official NCAA National Championships webpage from the host school, St. Lawrence University.
