Harden and Berends Nab NAIA All-American Honors
KANSAS CITY – For the first time in program history, two Trojans earned NAIA All-American honors in the same year, as Sarah Harden and Alex Berends received the recognition for finishing within the top-30 at the NAIA National Championships on Friday.
The duo has finished as the two fastest Trojans in five-of-six races this season. Both standouts have also logged sub-18:32 times in all six meets.
Sarah Harden was distinguished as a NAIA All-American for the second-time, following her 10th-place finish at Nationals. The sophomore picked up her second-consecutive sub-18:00 mark while setting the school record with a 17:46 time. Harden has placed in the top-10 in every race this year, including a pair of individual victories.
Alex Berends finished her career grabbing the 29th-spot at Nationals to land her second NAIA All-American honor. Berends put together a strong season with five top-seven placements, including an individual victory at our home course on September 21. The senior posted one sub-18:00 and four sub-18:30 marks.
Harden and Berends are the second and third two-time All-Americans in the history of the program, joining only Lolly York who did so in 2005 and 2006.