The Bowerman: Women’s Post-NCAA Indoor Championships Watch List

NEW ORLEANS – The records and milestones keep adding up for members of The Bowerman Women’s Watch List, as evidenced by the Post-NCAA Indoor Championships update released Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

This group made their presence known at the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships in Albuquerque, New Mexico, collectively winning 10 of the 15 individual events, plus running legs on both victorious relays – with four athletes combining for nine alterations to an already-weary collegiate record book.

Two athletes make their debut appearance on the Watch List – Ackera Nugent of Arkansas and Roisin Willis of Stanford. They join eight returners: Julien Alfred of Texas, Talitha Diggs of Florida, Lamara Distin of Texas A&M, Jasmine Moore of Florida, Masai Russell of Kentucky, Katelyn Tuohy of NC State, Jorinde van Klinken of Oregon and Britton Wilson of Arkansas.

The Bowerman – collegiate track & field’s highest honor – will be awarded in December at the USTFCCCA Convention in Denver, Colorado. Only marks from the 2023 indoor or outdoor collegiate track & field seasons are to be considered for the award.

Alfred, who hails from Castries, St. Lucia, added her fourth, fifth and sixth entries of the year to the collegiate record book at the NCAA Indoor Championships – twice in the 60 meters (6.96 in the prelims for a 6.94 final), plus her first in the 200 (22.01). She stands No. 2 in each event on the all-time world list. The only sub-7 collegian in 60-meter history, she owns nine of the top-10 performances all-time (eight from this year). She is undefeated in head-to-head races at all distances this year and was also the high-point scorer in Albuquerque with 22 points, adding a 51.76 third leg on Texas’ second-place 4×400 relay. This is Alfred’s seventh career Watch List appearance.

Diggs, who hails from Saucon Valley, Pennsylvania, clocked the second- and third-fastest indoor 400s of her career in finishing third at the NCAA Indoor Championships with a 50.49 third-place time that is the No. 9 collegiate performance all-time. She set a then-CR and American record of 50.15 at the SEC Indoor Championships after setting PRs of 7.14 in the 60, 22.61 in the 200 and 36.12 in the 300 this winter. This is Diggs’ fourth career Watch List appearance.

Distin, who hails from Hanover, Jamaica, extended her undefeated streak in the high jump to five meets this winter with a 1.91m (6-3¼) clearance for a second-straight NCAA Indoor title. Her highest jump of 1.97m (6-5½), set in winning February’s Tiger Paw Invitational, makes her =No. 3 collegian all-time as she owns the year’s four highest clearances. She hasn’t lost to a collegian since April 2 last year. This is Distin’s fourth career Watch List appearance.

Moore, who hails from Grand Prairie, Texas, set multiple CRs – and earned a unique place in history – in becoming the first woman to sweep the horizontal jumps at the NCAA Indoor Championships twice. First up was the long jump, where her 7.03m (23-0¾) leap eclipsed the 6.93m (22-9) set by 2021 The Bowerman finalist Tara Davis. A day later she obliterated her own triple jump CR of 14.57m (47-9¾) by almost two feet as her five measured efforts – all surpassing the record – were topped by a 15.12m (49-7¼) that is also an American record. Not only is she the first collegian to surpass 7 meters in the long jump (indoors) and 15 meters in the triple jump (anywhere), she is the first woman in the world to do it indoors since 1995 – and the first in the same year/meet. Undefeated by collegians in both events, she owns three of the top-10 collegiate indoor long jumps all-time and seven of the top-9 triple jumps (five this year). This is Moore’s 12^th career Watch List appearance.

Nugent, who hails from Kingston, Jamaica, makes her Watch List debut after clocking the two fastest collegiate times ever in the 60-meter hurdles at the NCAA Indoor Championships. In the prelims, she skimmed over the barriers in 7.72, lowering the CR from 7.75. In the final, she was almost as fast – 7.73 in regaining the NCAA title she last won in 2021 and avenging her only loss of the year, which came at the SEC Indoor Championships (in a then-PR 7.81) to previous CR holder Russell.

Russell, who hails from Potomac, Maryland, matched her PR in finishing second at the NCAA Indoor Championships 60-meter hurdles. That time of 7.75 was a CR when she first ran it in January, which began a barrage fast times that makes her the first collegian with three – let alone four – sub-7.80 clockings in history (she has times of 7.77 and 7.78 to go along with two 7.75s). She has already got her outdoor season up with a 56.66 time in the 400-meter hurdles, winning her first race by 3+ seconds. This is Russell’s third career Watch List appearance.

Tuohy, who hails from Stony Point, New York, capped her record-filled indoor season with the distance double at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Running at altitude (4900 feet), Tuohy notched the fastest collegiate 3000-meter time ever achieved at over 1000 meters (3280 feet) with her winning performance of 9:10.07. At sea level, she is the fastest collegian ever at three distances – 1500 meters (4:06.49), mile (4:24.26) and 3000 (8:35.20) – and was No. 9 in the 5000 (15:15.92) in racing undefeated against collegians at all distances. She even notched the distance medley relay’s fastest 1600 collegiate split of 4:23.36. This is Tuohy’s fourth career Watch List appearance.

van Klinken, who hails from Assen, The Netherlands, placed sixth in the shot put at the NCAA Indoor Championships at 17.77m (58-3¾). She set the CR with a 19.57m (64-2½) heave to win February’s Don Kirby Elite Invitational. She is best known for her discus throwing, in which she owns the CR of 70.22m (230-5) and has won the last two NCAA Outdoor titles. van Klinken is the active women’s Watch List leader with 13 career appearances.

Willis, who hails from Stevens Point, Wisconsin, makes her Watch List debut after becoming the first collegian with multiple sub-2:00 times in the 800, winning the NCAA Indoor Championships in 1:59.93 after clocking 1:59.95 in February. The only faster collegian is 2021 The Bowerman winner Athing Mu at 1:58.40, which was registered outdoors. Willis earned two victories in Albuquerque, running the third leg (800) of Stanford’s distance medley relay team, which recorded the fastest time ever at high altitude (10:56.34).

Wilson, who hails from Henrico, Virginia, ran a pair of sizzling 400s on the final day of the NCAA Indoor Championships. In the individual 400, she lowered the CR into sub-50 territory with a time of 49.48 in becoming American record holder and No. 2 on the all-time world list. An hour later, she came back to anchor the Arkansas 4×400 team with a 49.20 split as the Razorbacks bettered the world record by more than a second in 3:21.57. In other events this winter, she broke the CR in the 600 at 1:25.16 – besting the record held by 2021 The Bowerman winner Athing Mu – and ran 2:02.13 in the 800. Her outdoor portfolio might contain her best event, the 400 hurdles, in which she is reigning NCAA champ and owns a PR of 53.08, which is No. 3 on the all-dates collegiate all-time list. This is Wilson’s sixth career Watch List appearance.

Two athletes received votes from The Bowerman Watch List Committee but fell outside the Top 10: Rhasidat Adeleke of Texas and Favour Ofili of LSU.

The next women’s Watch List is scheduled for April 12.