Award History
NCAA DIII OTF National Awards2024 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field National Awards
NEW ORLEANS – National Athletes & Coaches of the Year for the 2024 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field season were announced on Thursday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
Award winners were determined by a vote of USTFCCCA member coaches at the conclusion of the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Only those individuals from USTFCCCA member programs are eligible for awards.
National Men's Field Athlete of the Year
Joseph White was named the National Men’s Field Athlete of the Year for the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field season. White, who hails from Kenosha, Wisconsin, scored 16 points at the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships thanks to an emphatic victory in the shot put and a third-place effort in the discus. During the regular season, White cracked the all-time top-10 in both the discus and shot put with winning throws at the CCIW Outdoor Championships. His 18.98m (62-3¾) put of the shot made him the No. 8 performer, while his 58.54m (192-1) heave of the disc etched his name into the record book at No. 10. White dominated the seasonal Descending Order List in the shot put, notching eight of the top-10 marks.
National Women's Assistant Coach of the Year
Gordon Reiter was named the National Women’s Assistant Coach of the Year for the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field season. Reiter, in his 11th year at Washington (Mo.), oversaw a dynamic performance by his middle distance athletes at the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships. It was in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where the Bears put up 44 points in those events – including national titles in the 400 meters, 800 meters and 4×400 relay – to propel themselves to the team title. His prized pupil Emma Kelley won both the 400 and 800 to become the first athlete in meet history to accomplish that feat since 1992. Not to be outdone, teammate Danielle Schultz finished runner-up in the 800 to give WashU 18 points in that event. Reiter’s athletes also starred at the UAA Outdoor Championships, securing a 1-2-3-4 finish in the 800 and winning the 4×400 relay by more than three seconds.
National Men's Assistant Coach of the Year
Norman Tate was named the National Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year for the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field season. Tate, in his 16th year at Rowan, led his sprinters and hurdles to an impressive effort at the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships. It was in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where those athletes scored 31 of the Profs’ 48 points, including a 1-2-5 finish in the 110-meter hurdles. Kwaku Nkrumah won the race in 13.77 for the second fastest mark in NCAA DIII history, while Jason Agyemang finished runner-up in 13.80 put him fifth on the all-time chart. Rowan also finished top-5 in both the 4×100 and 4×400 relay. All told, each of Tate’s athletes earned All-America honors and/or finished higher than their seed time going into the NCAA Championships. Tate’s athletes also starred at the NJAC Outdoor Championships, scoring 160 of the Profs’ record 366 points.
National Women's Track Athlete of the Year
Emma Kelley was named the National Women’s Track Athlete of the Year for the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field season. Kelley, who hails from St. Louis, scored 22.5 points at the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships behind a historic 400-800 double and a tote on the winning 4×400 relay. In winning both the 400 and 800, Kelley became the first female athlete to do so at the NCAA Championships since 1992. Don’t forget about her 54.06 split on the relay, either, that sent Washington (Mo.) from fourth place to first place and cemented its national team title. Kelley dominated the track either one or two laps at a time this season, cracking the all-time top-10 in both the 800 (No. 3, 2:02.70) and 400 (No. 9, 53.76).
National Men's Coach of the Year
Josh Buchholtz was named the National Men’s Coach of the Year for the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field season. Buchholtz, in his 16th year at UW-La Crosse, led the Eagles to the team title at the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships with 76 points. Those were the most points scored by a winning men’s team at the meet since 2007. UW-La Crosse scored points in 11 different events, including ten or more in five: 200 meters (14), steeplechase (11), 100 meters (ten), 800 meters (ten), and 4×100 relay (ten). Just a few weeks earlier, the Eagles romped to victory at the WIAC Outdoor Championships, where they scored 236 points – 70 more than the runner-up.
National Men's Track Athlete of the Year
Sam Blaskowski was named the National Men’s Track Athlete of the Year for the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field season. Blaskowski, who hails from Oshkosh, Wisconsin, scored 22.5 points at the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships thanks to victories in both the 100 meters and 200 meters, as well as a leg on the winning 4×100 relay. Just a few weeks earlier, Blaskowski set a wind-legal NCAA DIII record of 10.09 in the 100 meters at the UW-La Crosse Eagle Open. Blaskowski ended the season with two of the four fastest, wind-legal 100-meter marks in NCAA DIII history, the third fastest all-time performance in the 200, plus totes on three 4×100 relays whose times now rank among the top-4 marks in division history.
National Women's Coach of the Year
Jeff Stiles was named the National Women’s Coach of the Year for the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field season. Stiles, in his 23rd year at Washington (Mo.) led the Bears to the team title at the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships with 71 points. Those were the most points scored by a winning women’s team since 2015. WashU scored points in nine different events, including ten or more in four: 800 meters (18), 400 meters (ten), 4×400 relay (ten) and pole vault (ten). Twenty of those points came from Emma Kelley, who became the first female athlete to sweep the 400-800 since 1992. The Bears dominated the UAA Outdoor Championships, scoring 249.5 points – 46 more than the runner-up.
National Women's Field Athlete of the Year
Alexis Boykin was named the National Women’s Field Athlete of the Year for the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field season. Boykin, who hails from Clayton, Ohio, scored a staggering 28 points at the 2024 NCAA DIII Outdoor Track & Field Championships with an unprecedented sweep of the hammer and shot put, as well as a runner-up finish in the discus. The MIT standout came within 1 cm of winning all three events. Boykin left her mark on the record book in both the hammer and shot put in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina: she is now ranked fourth all-time in the former with her winning heave of 62.50m (205-1); and she is now rated eighth all-time in the latter following her victorious 15.44m (50-8) mark.