October 16, 2007

Angela (Sparacino) Sandy holds a title that can she can never lose – Dana College’s first National Champion. On Friday night, the Houston, Texas, native was inducted into Dana College’s Athletic Hall of Fame as part of the college’s Homecoming festivities. The three-time NAIA All-American captured the NAIA National Championship in the marathon as a junior in 1997 and returned to Nationals the following year to garner All-American honors again with a third-place finish. Sandy’s national championship was a run-away and a shocker. Running in her first full marathon ever, she took the lead about 19 miles into the race and ended up beating her nearest challenger by over two minutes. “ Dana gave me a chance,” Sandy said. “I was never a national championship caliber runner in high school.”

Sandy emphasized the teamwork behind the individual honor in accepting the honor of being inducted in Dana’s Athletic Hall of Fame. “I remember finishing the last mile of the NAIA National marathon I won in 1997. This memory stands out the most because I was encouraged and supported by my Dana teammates all the way to the finish line. Clearly, this memory holds the most merit for me because when I was at Dana, I was on a team that functioned as a family. Everything we did, we did as a team,” she said. ‘Winning the marathon was not only an individual success, but a win for the team. Being able to stand on the awards podium with two of my Dana teammates was the most rewarding. Our entire team was successful and there for each other.” (In 1997, fellow Dana runners Anna Hovde and Amanda Buttry also earned All-American honors in the marathon.)

Sandy also qualified for Nationals in cross country and was a three-time NAIA Academic All-American.

The 1998 Dana graduate lives in Bellevue, Neb., and is married to fellow Dana running star and Hall of Fame inductee Ben Sandy. They both are currently training to qualify for the Olympic Marathon Trials.

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For more information, contact:

Carrie L. Reed, Director of College Relations and Marketing,
402-426-7385, creed@dana.edu