OU Braves senior Garrard finishes sixth in marathon

ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Ottawa University senior Justin Garrard capped off his collegiate career with an All-American performance Saturday in the NAIA National Track and Field Championships in St. Louis, Mo.

Garrard finished sixth in the marathon (26.2 miles) with a school record and personal best time of 2 hours, 34 minutes and 43 seconds.

“Justin has had an outstanding four years,” Ottawa coach Kirk Wren said of that Antelope native. “He graduates tops in class, four-time NAIA Academic All-American, six school records, eight-time NAIA national qualifier in cross country, indoor and outdoor track and a multiple-event winner.

“Justin has made a lot of history here at Ottawa University. I’m proud of his accomplishments.”

Freshman Courtney Harris finished her first collegiate season with a throw of 127 feet, 3 inches in the javelin to finish 17th out of 29 participants.

“Courtney had a great year,” Wren said. “She won multi-meets this year and now holds the Ottawa University record in the javelin with a throw of 129-11.”

She finished second in the conference meet to earn all-conference honors.