COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee Tech's Na'Asha Robinson has been named the Ohio Valley Conference Female Freshman of the Year for the 2016 indoor track & field season. The honor was one of six announced Thursday morning in advance of the OVC Championships that will be held Friday and Saturday on the campus of Tennessee State University.
Robinson, a freshman from Huntsville, Ala., who attended Butler High School, owns the top 400-meter time in the OVC this year, posting a 54.14 at the Commodore Invitational. She is also ranked fifth in the league with a 200-meter time of 24.64. Robinson was part of the 4x400-meter relay team that is third in the conference this year.
All three of those times are Tennessee Tech school records. She also owns the school record in the 55-meter dash.
“Na'Asha has worked very hard this season and it’s gratifying to see her hard work is starting to pay off,” said Golden Eagle head coach Wayne Angel. ”For my peers to recognize this young lady speaks volumes in terms of where this program is headed."
Robinson works on a day-to-day basis with Tech assistant coach Eugene Frazier.
“Coach Frazier has done a wonderful job with this young lady,” Angel said. “Na'Asha has established herself as one of the top 400 meter runners in the country. She definitely is deserving of this recognition. I speak for all the Tech family when I say we are all so proud of NaAsha.”
In addition to being ranked tops in the OVC, her 400-meter time ranks 52nd nationally and has Robinson ranked No. 3 among freshmen in the nation.
The awards were selected in a vote among the conference head coaches.
Among the other award winners, Eastern Kentucky’s Jaime Perales earned Male Track Athlete of the Year while SIUE’s Julian Harvey was tabbed the Male Field Athlete of the Year. Male Freshman of the Year honors went to Belmont’s Ben Weisel. On the women’s side, Tennessee State’s Amber Hughes was named both the Female Track and Field Athlete of the Year. It marks the first time in OVC history that a student-athlete won both awards.
