Orono native and standout distance runner Ruth White became the eighth University of New Hampshire woman to be named America East Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
The 20-year-old White earned All-America honorable mention honors by finishing 22nd in the 10,000-meter run at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the University of Oregon last month. She posted a time of 33:11.62.
The sophomore finished second in the 10,000-meter run at the America East championships with a time of 33:55.29 and was ninth in the NCAA Division I East event with a season-best time of 33:08.83. The top 12 finishers from the Division I East race advanced to the nationals.
She had been seeded 27th for the East race.
White, who has a 3.98 cumulative grade-point average in mechanical engineering, set the school record in the 5,000-meter run in April with a time of 16:03.28 at the Friar Invitational in Providence. She also won the 5,000-meter run at both home meets.
She concluded the outdoor season with the fastest America East woman’s time in the 10,000-meter run and the third-fastest in the 5,000.
The 4-foot-8 White did not run during the indoor track season.
White participated in four cross country events last summer and fall, winning three and finishing third in the 25-team New England Intercollegiate Amateur Athletic Association meet at Hopkinton, New Hampshire, in October but she never ran another cross country meet including the America East championships.
She also didn’t run during the indoor track season after finishing third in the 5,000 meters and fifth in the 3,000 meters at the 2025 America East Indoor track championships.
White had an exceptional freshman season, winning the America East outdoor title in the 10,000 meters with a time of 32:57.83; finishing sixth in the NCAA Division I East race (32:50.17) and then earning second team All-American status with her ninth-place showing at the NCAA Division I championships (32:20.60).
White was a three-time Gatorade Cross Country Runner of the Year at Orono High School and was an All-American.