USTFCCCA Awards
By USTFCCCA Communications, USTFCCCA February 13, 2024   

M-F Athletic National Athletes of the Week (February 13, 2024)

NEW ORLEANS – We are speechless.

Here are the M-F Athletic National Athletes of the Week in collegiate track & field for February 13, 2024.

  • NCAA Division I Men – Ky Robinson, Stanford
  • NCAA Division I Women – Taylor Roe, Oklahoma State
  • NCAA Division II Men – Miguel Coca, Adams State
  • NCAA Division II Women – Gracie Hyde, Adams State
  • NCAA Division III Men – Josh Jeffes, SUNY Delhi
  • NCAA Division III Women – Lauren Jarrett, UW-La Crosse
  • NAIA Men – Tajean Houston, Texas Wesleyan
  • NAIA Women – Campbellsville (Ky.), 4×200 Relay
  • NJCAA Men – Indian Hills (Iowa) CC DMR
  • NJCAA Women – Lilly Alberts, Harper (Ill.)

Find out more about each of these athletes by scrolling below.

National Athlete of the Week is an award selected and presented by the USTFCCCA Communications Staff at the beginning of each week to 14 collegiate cross country athletes, when applicable (male and female for each of the three NCAA divisions, the NAIA and the NJCAA).

Nominations are open to the public. Coaches and sports information directors are encouraged to nominate their student-athletes; as are student-athletes, their families and friends, and fans of their programs. Nominated athletes are noticed before those athletes found through searching TFRRS.

The award seeks to highlight not only the very best times, marks and scores on a week-to-week basis, but also performances that were significant on the national landscape and/or the latest in a series of strong outings. Quality of competition, suspenseful finishes and other factors will also play a role in the decision.

NCAA DIVISION I MEN – Ky Robinson, Stanford

Junior | Distance
Brisbane, Australia

Prior to 2022, only one man in collegiate history had gone under eight minutes in the 3000 meters: Alistair Cragg with his 7:38.59 clocking back in 2004 at the Tyson Invitational.

Fast forward to the present day and that number is now 13.

Four of those athletes came from the same race on Friday at the Husky Classic. None ran faster than Ky Robinson of Stanford, who went 7:36.69 to become the second-fastest man in collegiate history, regardless of track size (Dempsey Indoor uses an oversized 300-meter track, compared to the standard, record-legal, 200-meter track that we use to delineate collegiate records).

Robinson was trailed by Aaron Las Heras of Northern Arizona at 7:37.26, Matt Strangio of Portland in 7:39.02 and Theo Quax of Northern Arizona at 7:39.85. Las Heras is now No. 5 on the all-conditions chart, while Strangio and Quax are No. 11 and No. 13, respectively.

This is the first time since 2019 that a male athlete from Stanford has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season (Grant Fisher on February 12).

NCAA DIVISION I WOMEN – Taylor Roe, Oklahoma State

Grad Student | Distance
Lake Stevens, Washington

Taylor Roe proved that the David Hemery Valentine Invitational wasn’t the only place to run fast this past weekend in Boston.

Roe put down two all-time marks – one individual and one as part of a relay – during the BC Eagle Elite Invitational at The TRACK at New Balance, which is the same venue that will host the upcoming NCAA DI Indoor Championships.

The Oklahoma State star kicked off the weekend with a virtually solo 15:12.71 effort over 5000 meters that sat third on the all-time collegiate chart at the time (Roe is now No. 4). That performance was just 0.49 seconds off the previous collegiate record held by Emily Sisson until earlier this season when Parker Valby demoted her to No. 2. And like Sisson back in 2015, Roe did it alone: Roe led by four seconds after 400 meters and won the section by nearly 40 seconds.

Roe returned to the oval the following afternoon to anchor the Cowgirls to the second-fastest mark in collegiate history in the distance medley relay of 10:47.20. She got the baton three seconds clear of the closest competitor and split 4:34.5 for the 1600-meter leg. Roe was preceded by Billah Jepkirui (1200 meters, 3:17.1), Tamara Woodley (400 meters, 53.7) and Gabija Galvydyte (800 meters, 2:01.9).

This is the first time since 2017 that a female athlete from Oklahoma State has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season (Kaela Edwards on January 17).

NCAA DIVISION II MEN – Miguel Coca, Adams State

Senior | Distance
Las Vegas, N.M

Miguel Coca wanted more and he got it. 

Just weeks after cracking the NCAA DII all-time top-10 list in the mile, the senior out of Las Vegas, New Mexico, led three athletes under the 7:50 threshold to set a new NCAA DII record in the 3000 meters. Coca flew past the line in 7:44.90, with Loic Scomparin of Colorado School of Mines (7:46.11) and Wingate’s Hamza Chahid (7:47.70) not far behind. 

Coca has been here before – down to the very day.

The Adams State product ran 7:52.13 last year to slide into the No. 5 position, joining three other Grizzlies in the process: James Dunn, Sydney Gidabuday, and Clement Duigou.

This is the second time this season that Coca has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week. Coca previously earned national weekly honors on January 30.

NCAA DIVISION II WOMEN – Gracie Hyde, Adams State

Grad Student | Distance
Benton, Arkansas

Gracie Hyde traveled to Boston University for the David Hemery Valentine Invitational set to compete in two events. What she didn’t know is how this plan would play out. (SPOILERS: It went quite well.) 

On Friday night, the Adams State distance runner smashed the NCAA DII 3000-meter record by eight seconds, stopping the clock at 8:58.33. The previous No. 1 time of 9.06.03 was recorded by fellow Grizzly Stephanie Cotter just last year.

Then on Saturday, Hyde was back at her record-breaking ways – but this time with teammates. She anchored Adams State’s DMR to an NCAA DII record of 11:08.94. Lieke Hoogsteen, Victoria Amiadamen, and Jessica Simon all took a share of the load before Hyde got the baton.

Primarily a steeplechaser, Hyde had attempted the open 3000 meters twelve times between her campaigns at Central Arkansas and the University of Arkansas. Her previous personal best was 9:16.01.

This is the third time in program history that a female athlete from Adams State has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season. Hyde joins Brianna Robles and two-time winner Kandace Thomas. 

NCAA DIVISION III MEN – Josh Jeffes, SUNY Delhi

Sophomore | Sprints
Scotia, New York

It was a two-man race in Section 4 of the 400 meters at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational in Boston: Josh Jeffes of SUNY Delhi went head-to-head with Basheer Alramahi of John Carroll.

Both men ended up in the NCAA DIII record book after they crossed the finish line.

Jeffes, however, won the race by 0.13 seconds in 47.05, which is the fourth-fastest mark in NCAA DIII history on a record-legal track and the second-fastest mark since 2004. Alramahi finished in 47.18 to make him the seventh-fastest performer on a record-legal track in history.

This is the second time in program history that a male athlete from SUNY Delhi has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season. Keimon Barrow previously earned national weekly honors on January 27, 2015, when SUNY Delhi was an NJCAA program.

NCAA DIVISION III WOMEN – Lauren Jarrett, UW-La Crosse

Sophomore | Sprints
La Crosse, Wisconsin

Welcome to the record book, Lauren Jarrett.

The UW-La Crosse standout blasted the straightaway in 7.49 seconds at the Midwest ELITE Invitational this past weekend to equal the third-fastest performer in NCAA DIII history. That was also the fastest time in the division since 2018 when Wadeline Jonathas and Quinn Harlan ruled the 60-meter scene (Jonathas has the record at 7.40; Harlan sits second at 7.46).

Jarrett used her stellar performance at the NCAA DIII Outdoor Championships last year as a springboard for this indoor season. She finished runner-up in both the 100 meters and 200 meters and ran the second leg of UW-La Crosse’s third-place 4×100 relay team.

This is the first time in program history that a female athlete from UW-La Crosse has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season.

NAIA MEN – Tajean Houston, Texas Wesleyan

Junior | Hurdles
Kingston, Jamaica

Tajean Houston hurdled to his two fastest indoor times ever at Pittsburg State’s Gorilla Classic – that’s also the two fastest this year in the NAIA.

He clocked 7.78 in the semifinals for the then-leading NAIA mark (and fastest since 2020) before shaving his best down to 7.77 as the top collegian in finishing as runner-up in the final. Houston – last year’s NAIA Outdoor 110-meter hurdles champion – now owns the three fastest performances this year in the NAIA.

This is the first time that a male or female athlete from Texas Wesleyan has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season.

NAIA WOMEN – Campbellsville (Ky.) 4×200

It’s not often that Campbellsville (Ky.) gets a chance to run the 4×200 relay indoors, and the Tigers jumped at the opportunity at the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCAA) Championships in Cedarville, Ohio.

The foursome of senior Jamila Garba (Irvine, California), sophomore Jaci Johnson (Louisville, Kentucky), junior KaNiya Douglas (Louisville, Kentucky) and junior LaAuhnni Lewis (Bowling Green, Kentucky) won the title by nearly two seconds in 1:44.31, the year’s fastest by an NAIA squad and third known best in NAIA history. Garba and Douglas also ran on the winning 4×400 team as Campbellsville finished fourth in the team scoring.

This is the first time that a female or male athlete from Campbellsville has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season.

NJCAA MEN – Indian Hills (Iowa) CC DMR

Indian Hills (Iowa) CC was well aware of rival Iowa Western CC claiming the all-time, all-conditions NJCAA indoor best in the distance medley relay last week in 9:46.12.

The Warriors went after that mark with a vengeance at Pittsburg State’s Gorilla Classic, breaking it by 2.52 seconds with a time of 9:43.60.

Cole Reinders of Sarnia, Ontario, opened up with a 2:59 split for 1200 meters, followed by the 46.7 400 leg by Chris Johnson of Houston. Terrick Johnson of Memphis, Tennessee, added a 1:49.9 split in the 800, handing the baton to the only freshman on the foursome, Keveroy Venson of Linstead, Jamaica. Venson – the seasonal NJCAA 1000-meter leader at 2:25.30 – brought the team home with a 4:07 split for 1600.

This is the 11th time that male athletes from Indian Hills have been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season. This squad joins Traunard Folson and Tyrice Taylor (both earlier this year), Rivaldo Marshall (three times in 2023), Kendrick Winfield (2022), Kenny Bednarek (three times in 2019) and Nathan Winters (2017) in that regard.

NJCAA WOMEN – Lilly Alberts, Harper (Ill.)

Sophomore | Mid-Distances
Richmond, Illinois

Lilly Alberts found the right race in the 800 meters at Grand Valley State’s Big Meet II.

Taking control after the 500m check point, Alberts sped to win by 2.62 seconds as her time of 2:07.81 was an absolute PR by 4.61 seconds. That rates her No. 4 all-time on the NJCAA all-conditions indoor list.

Alberts’ time is this year’s fastest among NJCAA athletes, who compete without divisions indoors. She’s in NJCAA Division III in her other sports of cross country (winning last fall’s title at 5k by 48.2 seconds) and outdoor track & field (winning last year’s 800 by 8.06 seconds plus anchoring the Hawks’ winning 4×100, 4×400 and 4×800 teams).

This is the first time a female or male athlete from Harper has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week during the indoor season. It’s the tenth total such award for Alberts, who has earned the honor seven times in cross country and twice in outdoor track & field.