By BRENT STUBBS

Chief Sports Editor

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net    

SASHA Wells, undoubtedly one of the greatest female track and field athletes at Oral Roberts University, will be the second Bahamian to be inducted into the Athletic Department.

Wells, who follows Andretti Bain, the greatest Bahamian male track athlete, is set to be inducted into the 2025 ORU Athletic Hall of Fame with former senior associate athletic director Rhonda Fowler, former athletic director Mike Carter, and the 1978 baseball College World Series team.

Athletic director Tim Johnson made the announcement on Monday for the inductees that will be honoured at halftime of the men’s basketball game on February 1, 2025, against Kansas City at the Mabee Center. 

Wells, an outstanding sprinter/hurdler during her tenure at ORU, said she was really shocked when she got the call from Johnson.

“I was surprised because I feel that when people get inducted into the Hall of Fame, it’s been many, many years since they were in school,” Wells said. “For me, it’s only been four years since I’ve been at ORU, so I feel really honoured and proud.

“It made me feel so special for the time that I spent at ORU. It was a great reminder of everything that I did while I was there.”

From 2017-2021 when she competed for ORU, Wells left her mark on the school’s indoor 60 metre hurdles record in a time of 8.30 seconds and the outdoor 100m hurdles in 13.19. She also placed her name on the Summit League Championship records in the indoor 60m hurdles with 8.36 in 2020 and the outdoor 100m hurdles of 13.29 in 2021. Additionally, Wells was a 3x Summit League Track Athlete of the Year; 11x Summit League Event Champion; 21x All-Summit League Selection and 6x Summit League Track Athlete of the Week.

“I think I accomplished a lot there,” Wells said. “I almost didn’t remember how much I did at ORU, whether it was breaking records or even winning so many titles.

“After moving on to other schools, I almost forgot all that I did ORU. So it was a great reminder because it gave me the opportunity to reflect on what I did with my team-mates and the coaching staff there.”

Wells eventually went on to compete in the NCAA Outdoor West Preliminaries Qualifier in 2021 in the 100m hurdles where she ran 13.19 for 18th in the preliminaries and 13.45 for 18th in the quarterfinals; in 2019 in the 100m hurdles in 13.59 for 19th and 2018 in the 100m hurdles.

Academically, Wells made the 2021 CoSIDA Academic All-America Team; 2021 CoSIDA Academic All-District Team; 2020 CoSIDA Academic All-District Team; 2021 Outdoor Academic All-Summit League; 2020-21 Indoor Academic All-Summit League; 2020 Outdoor Academic All-Summit League; 2019-20 Indoor Academic All-Summit League; 2018-19 Indoor Academic All-Summit League and the Summit League Honor Roll in 2020-21, 2019-20, 2018-19 and 2017-18.

“I don’t think I can pinpoint one particular win or things that I accomplished,” Wells stated. “I think mostly it was the time that I spent with the people there, whether it was with my team-mates or thr coaches, we all really connected. It was like we were  family.”

Since ORU, Wells has moved on to compete for the University of Florida and is now enrolled at Florida International University where she is pursuing her Phd in history.

With her focus mainly on her education, Wells said she’s taking a little break from track and field because she will return to competing as a professional athlete in the future.

Wells, 25, is the daughter of Bahamian Olympic sprinter turned politician Rendward Wells and Sarah Wells, who along with her older brother Sethren, also competed for ORU. 

Her younger sister Sierra competed in high school and her other siblings Soren, Soraya and Sakaren are all current members of the Redline Athletics Track Club.