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NCAA News Release
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NCAA Names Rhondale Jones And Kim Oden Division III Track And Field Most Outstanding Student-Athletes In Honor Of The 25th Anniversary Of Women's Championships
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For Immediate Release
Monday, May 15, 2006
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Contact(s)
Gail Dent
Associate Director of Public and Media Relations
317/917-6117
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INDIANAPOLIS --- The NCAA has announced that Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) graduate Rhondale Jones and Nebraska Wesleyan University graduate Kim Oden have been named the NCAA Division III Most Outstanding Student-Athletes in track and field for their accomplishments in NCAA competition. The honor, which was bestowed as part of the NCAA's 25th Anniversary of Women's Championships celebration, takes into account outstanding performances in NCAA championships over the past 25 years.
Jones finished her collegiate career with nine NCAA Division III women's outdoor track and field individual titles. She won titles in the 100-meter dash (1999, 00, 01), 100-meter hurdles (1999, 00, 01), and the 200-meter dash (1999, 00, 01). Jones currently holds the NCAA championship record for the 200-meter dash with a time of 23.72 seconds, which she set in 1999.
A sixteen-time All-American, Jones graduated from Lincoln in 2003 with a degree in elementary education and is certified in math, social studies and language arts. She lives in Georgia and teaches seventh grade math at Mundy's Meal Middle School.
Oden won seven NCAA Division III women's outdoor track and field individual titles during her career at Nebraska Wesleyan. Oden was a four-time champion in the high jump (1989, 90, 91, 92) and a three-time champion in the heptathlon (1990, 91, 92). She set the NCAA championship record for the heptathlon in 2001 with 5, 320 points; a record that still stands today.
Oden earned 30 All-America honors and set 12 school records while participating in the high jump, triple jump, long jump, heptathlon, javelin and hurdles. She also won the NCAA Division IIII indoor high jump title three times. As a senior, Oden was honored as the Honda Broderick Division III Athlete of the Year and Most Outstanding Track and Field Athlete in the nation.
Oden graduated in 1993 with a degree in interpersonal communication. She was inducted into Nebraska Wesleyan's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002 and the United States Track and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division III Track and Field Hall of Fame in 2005.
In 1981, the NCAA began sponsoring women's championships, which opened the door to increased athletic and academic opportunities for female athletes. Today, the NCAA sponsors 44 women's championships in 20 sports, providing more than 150,000 women with an opportunity to compete for national titles each year.
An NCAA panel selected the most outstanding student-athletes in Division III track and field. The panel used historical data and championship results to make its decision.
The 2006 NCAA Division III Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be held May 25-27 at the Sports Complex at Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois. Benedictine University and Lisle Convention and Visitors Bureau will be the hosts of the championships.
The following NCAA women's sports are celebrating their 25th anniversary during the 2005-06 season: Division I and III women's field hockey; Division I, II and III women's cross country; Division I, II and III women's volleyball; Division I, II and III women's swimming; Division I, II and III women's basketball; National Collegiate women's gymnastics; Division I, II and III women's tennis; Division I women's golf; Division I women's lacrosse; Division I women's rowing; Division I and II softball; and Division I, II and III women's outdoor track.
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