Angelo State sophomore Aisha Adams placed eighth in the heptathlon at the 2009 USA Track & Field Outdoor National Championships this past weekend in Eugene, Ore.

Adams, a native of Covington, Tenn., finished the competition with a personal-best 5,636 points. She bettered her point tally from last month's NCAA Division II National Championships by 50 points on the national stage. By finishing in the top eight at the competition, Adams has qualified for the U.S. Team for the Thorpe Cup, held near Frankfurt, Germany, Aug. 8-9.

Adams opened the competition Saturday with a strong performance in the 100-meter hurdles, running a time of 13.18 for 1,005 points, winning her heat and matching her personal best set in the event at the D-II National Championships. However, she struggled in the high jump (5'4.25") and the shot put (38'5.5") before rebounding in the 200-meter dash. She closed the first day with a 13.68 in the fourth event, six one-hundredths shy of her personal best, for a day-one total of 3,335 points.

She opened the second day with a leap of 19'11.75" in the long jump and followed that up with a throw of 120' in the javelin to more her into the top eight. Adams finished the competition with a personal-best time of 2:20.13 in the 800-meter dash to secure her trip to Germany in August.

Adams was the only D-II student-athlete in the 19-person field of the heptathlon. This season, she was named the NCAA D-II National Female Field Athlete of the Year.