The Bowerman: 2022 Women’s Semifinalists

NEW ORLEANS – After months of competition, ten women remain in contention for The Bowerman, collegiate track & field’s highest individual honor.

The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced The Bowerman Women’s Watch List Committee’s selections on Monday.

The semifinalists are Julien Alfred of Texas, Adelaide Aquilla of Ohio State, Anna Hall of Florida, Jasmine Moore of Florida, Favour Ofili of LSU, Camryn Rogers of California, Abby Steiner of Kentucky, Jorinde van Klinken of Arizona State, Courtney Wayment of BYU and Britton Wilson of Arkansas.

Florida is the sixth program in award history to have multiple women’s semifinalists in the same year.

Finalists for The Bowerman will be announced on June 27. The Bowerman winner will be announced December 15 as part of the USTFCCCA Convention in Aurora, Colorado.

Alfred, who hails from Castries, St. Lucia, followed up her collegiate record-setting indoor campaign in the 60 meters with an undefeated outdoor season in the 100 meters that culminated with the NCAA title. Her 7.04 CR in the 60 came in the heats of the NCAA Indoor Championships, while her outdoor best in the 100 of 10.81 came in the heats of the Big 12 Championships to become No. 3 collegian all-time. She also twice ran wind-aided times of 10.80. In the 200 she ran bests of 22.46 indoors (=No. 8 collegian all-time) and 22.46 outdoors (=No. 9 collegian all-time). She contributed to Texas relay teams which made all-time marks in four outdoor events – 4×100 (42.34, No.5 program all-time), 4×200 (1:29.03, No. 2 performance all-time), 4×400 (3:22.94, No. 4 program all-time) and sprint medley (3:28.95, No. 2 performance all-time).

Aquilla, who hails from Rocky River, Ohio, completed her 2022 collegiate season in a big way, launching her first effort in the shot put at the NCAA Outdoor Championships out to 19.64m (64-5¼), a collegiate record that also is farther than the indoor CR. That gave her a repeat national title and avenged her only loss to a collegian all year, when she finished second at the NCAA Indoor Championships. She compiled two all-time top-10 performances outdoors as well as two indoors, the farthest of which indoors moved her to No. 5 all-time with a best of 19.09m (62-7¾).

Hall, who hails from Highland Ranch, Colorado, added an extra challenge in her final heptathlon – contesting the 400 hurdles final some 24 minutes before the heptathlon’s concluding 800 meters. All of this came at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, where she gave her Gators 18 points by finishing second in the 400H before winning the heptathlon with 6385 points, the No. 7 performance in collegiate history. She scored higher twice earlier – 6458 to become No. 2 collegian ever and 6412 with the No. 5 performance all-time. Each of her 7-eventers included at least one heptathlon collegiate record – twice in the 200 (23.14 before an ultimate 23.13) and the 800 (2:04.61 before a final 2:03.11, both the fastest by an American as well). Indoors, she moved to No. 4 all-time at 4618 in the pentathlon (including a pentathlon CR/AR 800 of 2:05.33) and also won the NCAA Indoor title.

Moore, who hails from Grand Prairie, Texas, became just the second woman to sweep the long jump and triple jump at both the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships, joining Sheila Hudson (1990). She also went four-for-four in the SEC Indoor and Outdoor Championships. Her triple jump season kicked off in record form, spanning 14.55m (47-9) in January to take down the collegiate record held by 2018 The Bowerman winner Keturah Orji. Moore improved on that mark, going 14.57m (47-9¾) as part of her NCAA double and finished the indoor season with four of the top-10 all-time indoor performances. Outdoors, her farthest TJ was a wind-aided 14.46m (47-5¼) in winning the SEC title, making her No. 3 all-time collegian outdoors under any conditions. Moore’s winning mark at the NCAA Outdoor Championships of 14.32m (46-11¾) was the second longest in meet history and the No. 7 performance all-time. She was undefeated against collegians in the triple jump, with just one loss in the long jump.

Ofili, who hails from Port Harcourt, Nigeria, ran like a rocket in the sprints, especially outdoors in the 200 meters she set a then-collegiate record of 21.96. While that’s now No. 2 all-time, she owns the four all-time top-10 performances – all 22.08 or faster. Ofili was runner-up in that event at the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships and added a fifth-place in the outdoor 100 and seventh in the indoor 60. Her 100 best of 10.93 (into a headwind of -0.7 meters per second) came as part of a sweep of the SEC Outdoor sprints and rates her No. 9 all-time collegiately.

Rogers, who hails from Richmond, British Columbia, broke her own collegiate record in the hammer throw three times in the span of two months. Those three performances are among the top-4 in collegiate history, where Rogers’ name is dominant with all of the top-10 performances (eight from this year). Her first raising of the CR this year came in April’s Mt. SAC Relays at 75.73m (248-6), which also equaled the Canadian Record. The second improvement of the year came when only a safe effort was needed at the NCAA West Preliminary Round, but Rogers let it fly for the event’s first collegiate 250-footer at 76.46m (250-10). At the NCAA Championships, she held a slim lead after three rounds as two women collegians surpassed 245-0 (74.68m) for the first time history, but Rogers exploded for a fifth-round 77.67m (254-10) to add four feet to the CR for the event’s largest improvement since 2006. It was her third NCAA title in the hammer, tying the most for a woman. Indoors, she competed in the weight throw and moved to =No. 10 collegian all-time at 24.06m (78-11¼) in finishing third at the NCAA Indoor Championships. This is the second time Rogers has been a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Steiner, who hails from Dublin, Ohio, started and finished the year in record fashion. Her first collegiate record took down one of the oldest on the books as she clocked 35.80 in December to break the 40-year-old mark of 35.83 set by Merlene Ottey. She lowered the 200 CR twice, first to 22.37 and finally to a blistering 22.09 at the SEC Indoor Championships in attaining the American record as well. Steiner won the 200 at the NCAA Indoor Championships in a meet record and added a runner-up finish in 60, running a PR 7.10. Outdoors, she seemed to make history in every race, including a 200 PR of 22.38 in April recorded into a headwind of -5.6 meters per second. At the SEC Outdoor Championships, where she contributed the fastest split (48.78) on UK’s CR-setting 4×400 team (3:21.93) in addition to three other runner-up finishes (100, 200, 4×100). Her final CR of the year – a scintillating 21.80 to win the NCAA Outdoor title – made her the first woman since Ottey to own the both the indoor and outdoor 200 CRs. Her final race of the year collegiately was running on the Wildcats’ winning 4×400 relay. Steiner’s split was 48.92, second-fastest in meet history.

van Klinken, who hails from Assen, The Netherlands, won two titles in two events in the NCAA Championships this year. Her first came indoors, winning the shot put with a PR 19.08m (62-7¼) to become No. 5 collegian all-time. Her second came outdoors, claiming a second-straight discus crown at 62.16m (203-11). She improved her outdoor PR to 18.75m (61-6¼), No. 12 all-time collegian. This is van Klinken’s second time being named as a semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Wayment, who hails from Layton, Utah, won the steeplechase at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a collegiate-record time of 9:16.00, more than eight seconds faster than the previous CR. It wasn’t her first foray into all-time top-10 territory: Wayment was already No. 4 in the steeple before that at 9:26.88 from earlier in the year, and had moved to No. 7 all-time collegiately indoors in both the 3000 (8:50.05) and 5000 (15:15.46), winning the NCAA Indoor title in the latter. In addition to steepling outdoors, she also anchored the BYU distance medley relay team to the program’s first Penn Relays wheel with the No. 3 all-time collegiate time at 10:50.22.

Wilson, who hails from Henrico, Virginia, won the NCAA Outdoor title in the 400H NCAA Outdoor Championships. She dominated the SEC Outdoor Championships in a memorable display of versatility – winning the 400 in a PR 50.05 (then No. 6 all-time collegian) before a 400 hurdles victory in a PR 53.75 (No. 5 all-time collegian) before running anchor the 4×400 relay with a split of 48.60, the fastest collegiate split in history. When concentrating on her specialty, the 400 hurdles, Wilson recorded the four fastest times of the year. Her record setting began indoors as part of the Razorbacks’ 4×400 team, which won the SEC Indoor Championships with a CR of 3:24.09. Wilson clocked 49.84 as fastest on that unit.

Finalists for The Bowerman will be announced on June 27.