That reason may be that the word "race" has been used in this way in science fiction and fantasy for a long time, and we got used to it. This is despite the fact that technically it is not accurate. Dwarves would most likely be a distinct species, not a race, at least so far as the modern dictionary definition is concerned. However, we should keep in mind that Oxford dictionary, when Tolkien was writing (and was a scholar of language, btw), had it "race" was, apparently, 'A group of people, animals, or plants, connected by common descent or origin.' ... however I am unable at the moment to properly validate that assertion (found here: https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/55606/is-race-a-synonym-of-species-or-is-just-a-common-mistake) as the link to which the responder references to Oxford English Dictionary is apparently dead now, unfortunately.
At any rate, to my mind, "the race of dwarves" flows better off the tounge than "the species of dwarves".
I would also say that for me this holds true much more for fantasy genre games than sci-fi, as I could also easily see a group of scientist-astronaut adventurers saying something like "we have landed on a planet upon which the predominant species are Elves and Dwarves" ... as scientific nomenclature this is both correct, and would make sense to hear in context of the game world.
But for Fantasy, for me, not so much. I just can't quite imagine Aragorn or Gandalf saying "the dwarven species". It simply doesn't sound right to me.
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I prefer race and yards in fantasy,
and species and meters in science fiction.
Just seems to fit that way.
As the word "species" is usually defined in biology, different species are unable to interbreed and generate fertile offspring. So in Tolkien, Elves and Humans at least aren't different species in that regard. I'm not sure about the others.
Of course, in the Middle Earth, Elves, Dwarves and Humans haven't evolved, but have been created by Ilúvatar and Aulë, so biological taxonomy probably isn't a very adequate metric.
Interestingly, though, Orcs are - at least originally - corrupted Elves. So, are they different species? I wouldn't say so. It just sounds weird.
Ultimately, fantasy races (yes, I concur it just sounds better) have no parallel in the real world, so no wonder our words are all a bit inadequate under close scrutiny.
I prefer cultures. Adventures in Middle Earth (and the One Ring RPG) uses this effectively to distinguish between different races/species but also between important subgroups within in. For example, the Elves of Rivendell have many similarities to the Elves of Lorien but have important differences as well.
This appeals to be creative because due to how my Majestic Wilderlands setting developed over the decades, it mattered in the setting when one was a Tharian Horselord versus being a Ghinorian even when both are human. Just as it matters in a traditional D&D setting whether one is Dwarf or an Elf. And just as easily ignored depending on the interest of the players.
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