NEW ORLEANS – Lee University's Aria Hawkins was selected as the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division II Women's National Athlete of the Week on Tuesday following her performance at the Vanderbilt Invitational this past weekend.

Hawkins placed fourth in the mile with a Lee Record time of 4:41.36. The mark is nearly five seconds ahead of Annie Wild of Stanislaus State, who posted 4:46.05 halfway across the country at the Washington Indoor Preview.

In the 800-meter run, Hawkins secured another provisional qualifying mark after completing the race at 2:13.13. Not only does Hawkins now hold the top time in the nation in the mile, but she has also been at the top of the 3K performance list since the beginning of December when she hit 9:19.54 at the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener in Boston.

This is the second time a female athlete from Lee has been named National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season. Celine Ritter also earned the honor on February 23, 2021.

The National Athlete of the Week is an award selected and presented by the USTFCCCA Communications Staff at the beginning of each week to 14 collegiate athletes, when applicable (male and female for each of the three NCAA divisions, the NAIA and the NJCAA).

Nominations are open to the public. Coaches and sports information directors are encouraged to nominate their student-athletes; as are student-athletes, their families and friends, and fans of their programs. Nominated athletes are noticed before those athletes found through searching TFRRS.

The award seeks to highlight not only the very best times, marks and scores on a week-to-week basis, but also performances that were significant on the national landscape and/or the latest in a series of strong outings. Quality of competition, suspenseful finishes and other factors will also play a role in the decision.