Buffalo State Sports Information Department

VIRGINIA BEACH, VA – Natalia Sawyer (Schenectady, NY/Schalmont) won the national championship in the 60-meter hurdles, and ran one of the fastest times in Division III history for a second-place finish in the 400-meter dash on Saturday afternoon at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships at the Virginia Beach Sports Center.

Qualifying in third place yesterday in the 60 hurdles prelims with a school and SUNYAC-record time of 8.47 seconds, Sawyer slowly made up ground over the first hurdles, and sped ahead of the competition after the final hurdle for a winning time of 8.50 seconds. Second-place finisher Hannah Zastrow of Wisconsin-Stout finished in second place with a mark of 8.53 seconds.

In the 400-meter dash prelims yesterday, Sawyer had also posted a school and conference record with a mark of 55.56 seconds. In the first heat of the finals, Kenadee Wayt of Mount Union posted the top time of 54.72 seconds. In the second heat, Sawyer entered the second lap in third place in her heat, but overtook the other two competitors in the final lap. Down the final straightaway, Sawyer closed strong for a time of 54.86 seconds. That mark surpassed the school and conference records, and was the sixth-fastest time in the event in Division III history.

The two All-America honors for Sawyer add to an extremely impressive resume for the sophomore. Through three national championship meets, Sawyer now has been an All-American four times, with two national titles (2023 Outdoor Championships – 400-meter hurdles, 2024 Indoor Championships – 60-meter hurdles).   

Natalia Sawyer Advances to Finals of 60 Hurdles and 400 Meters at Day One of NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships

The Buffalo State women's track and field team wrapped up competition at the opening day of the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships on Friday afternoon at the Virginia Beach Sports Center, with Natalia Sawyer (Schenectady, NY/Schalmont) advancing to the finals in both of her events, and Makhia Laster (Buffalo, NY/Tapestry Charter) also competing in a pair of events, while improving on her pre-championship seeding in her first championship appearance.

Sawyer broke the school and conference records in both the 60-meter hurdles and 400-meter dash. Sawyer advances to the final for the 60 hurdles at 3:00 pm tomorrow, and in the 400 meters at 4:25 pm. In her second indoor championships appearance, the sophomore secured a finals berth with a time of 8.47 seconds in the 60 hurdles, breaking the school and conference mark set by Buffalo State Athletics hall of famer Jazmin Dunham in 2015 by three-hundredths of a second. That time was the third-fastest mark at the meet, and just two-hundredths of a second off the time of top qualifier Laura Matthews of Stevens. Sawyer was also the top qualifier in the 400 meters, shattering her own school and conference records set last season at national championships with a time of 55.56 seconds.

Entering in heat two of three, Sawyer finished second in her heat for the 60 hurdles, as Matthews edged across the line just in front of Sawyer, followed by Elmhurst's Nakala Nadeau, who was the final qualifier to tomorrow's finals. The top three qualifiers were separated by just .02, setting up a potential photo finish tomorrow afternoon. In the 400 meters, Sawyer started smoothly and sat in third place in her heat at the midway point. From that point on, she hit the next gear and finished the final 200 meters in 29.01 seconds to easily overtake her competition in heat two.

Laster competed in the long jump and the 60-meter dash, entering in a tie for 17^th place in each event. Her first jump in the long jump measured 5.12 meters, followed by her best mark of 5.40 meters on her second attempt. Needing a huge final jump to advance to the finals, Laster couldn't land a legal jump. She finished in 15^th place in the event. In the 60-meter dash, the junior finished in 7.68 seconds, a personal-best time. She finished just five-hundredths of a second outside of a top-eight finish in 13^th place.