The Bowerman: 2024 Women’s Semifinalists

NEW ORLEANS – Watch List time is over for The Bowerman in 2024.

Ten women have been named as semifinalists for The Bowerman as the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced The Bowerman Watch List Committee’s semifinalist selections on Tuesday.

Three women from this list will be selected as finalists: Jasmine Jones of Southern California, Doris Lemngole of Alabama, McKenzie Long of Ole Miss, Rhema Otabor of Nebraska, Nickisha Pryce of Arkansas, Maia Ramsden of Harvard, Jaida Ross of Oregon, Ackelia Smith of Texas, Parker Valby of Florida and Juliette Whittaker of Stanford.

Collectively these semifinalists won 18 individual NCAA titles, set seven collegiate records and notched 36 all-time top-10 performances.

The Bowerman will be awarded in December at the USTFCCCA Convention in Orlando, Florida.

Jones, who hails from Atlanta, Georgia, became the first woman to win the indoor 60 hurdles and outdoor 400 hurdles in NCAA DI history. Her indoor victory in 7.77 made her No. 3 all-time collegiately and her outdoor win in 53.15 placed her at No. 2 as she was undefeated against collegians in both events. She also added a 7.78 clocking in the 60H that is the No. =7 performance all-time.

Lemngole, who hails from West Pokot County, Kenya, lowered the steeplechase collegiate record to 9:15.24 in winning the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships. She owns two of the top-4 performances all-time collegiately, adding her season-opening 9:22.31, and her undefeated season in the event included times of 9:28.21 and 9:28.91, making her the first collegian with more than two – let alone three – sub-9:30 clockings in a single season. Indoors she rates No. 2 all-time collegiately in the 5000 at 15:04.71.

Long, who hails from Ironton, Ohio, won the 100-200 double at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in times of 10.82w and 21.83, respectively, with the latter just 0.03 seconds off the CR by 2022 The Bowerman winner Abby Steiner. The Ole Miss standout clocked 21.95 in the semifinals at the NCAA, becoming the first woman with multiple wind-legal sub-22 performances in career – let alone a season – and also recorded a time of 22.03, the No. 8 performance all-time collegiately. Her wind-legal best in the 100 of 10.91 ties her for No. 10 all-time on the collegiate list. She also ran the second leg on the NCAA-winning 4×100, which ran the year’s fastest time of 42.22. In the winter she was runner-up in the 200 at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 22.51, a low-altitude PR.

Otabor, who hails from Nassau, Bahamas, won the javelin at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships with a CR of 64.19m (210-7), breaking the previous mark by exactly 2 meters (6-6). That round-5 performance – one of just eight 200-foot throws in collegiate history – moved her up from second place in the standings. Her undefeated season included wins at the Big Ten Championships and Drake Relays invitational division.

Pryce, who hails from St. Mary, Jamaica, ran the first collegiate sub-49 time in the 400 in winning the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships in a CR 48.89. She also clocked a 49.32 in winning the SEC Outdoor Championships, giving her two of the top-5 collegiate performances all-time. She added recorded a split 49.20 on Arkansas’ 4×400 relay team that won the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships with a CR 3:17.96. In the winter she finished second in the 400 at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Ramsden, who hails from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, won NCAA titles indoors (mile) and outdoors (1500). She moved to No. 2 all-time collegiately on both lists – the indoor mile at 4:24.83 and the outdoor 1500 at 4:02.58 – in addition to the indoor 1500 (4:06.51). Those weren’t her only fast marks as she added all-time performances Nos. 3 and 4 in the indoor 1500, No. 3 in the indoor mile and Nos. 4, 7 and 10 in the outdoor 1500. She anchored the Harvard distance medley relay team to a CR with a 4:21.47, the fastest ever for 1600 meters.

Ross, who hails from Medford, Oregon, made three adjustments to the shot put CR this spring – first at 19.71m (64-8) before tying it three weeks later. She crushed that record in breaking a pair of at the NCAA DI West First Round, hitting 20.01m (65-7¾) to become the first collegian over 20 meters and 65 feet. She completed an undefeated outdoor season winning the NCAA title by nearly three feet at 19.57m (64-2½), giving her four of the top-5 marks in collegiate history. In the winter she was second at the NCAA DI Indoor Championships after earlier becoming No. 9 collegian all-time at 18.84m (61-9¾).

Smith, who hails from Clarendon, Jamaica, won her second horizontal jump double at the NCAA DI Outdoor Championships, setting outdoor seasonal bests in each event. Her only mark longer this year than her winning 6.79m (22-3½) in the long jump was a wind-aided 7.10m (23-3½) that is No. 2 on the all-time, all-conditions list, while her 14.52m (47-7¾) winner in the triple jump is the No. 5 performance all-time collegiately as she added a 14.50m (47-7) that is No. =6. She is a repeat semifinalist for The Bowerman.

Valby, who hails from Tampa, Florida, won a pair of NCAA doubles – the 3000-5000 indoors and the 5000-10,000 outdoors, all in meet records. In both cases, the 5000 also served as a new collegiate record (indoors breaking her own from earlier in the season). Valby added a CR of 30:50.43 in the 10,000 in her debut at the distance. She was undefeated in all eight of her finals, each with a performance ranking among the all-time top-10 as she now owns Nos. 3 and 6 in the indoor 3000 (best of 8:41.50), Nos. 1 and 2 in the indoor 5000 (best of 14:52.79), Nos. 1 and 5 in the outdoor 5000 (best of 14:52.18) and Nos. 1 and 7 in the 10,000. Her smallest margin of victory was 5.21 seconds in the NCAA Indoor 3000.

Whittaker, who hails from Laurel, Maryland, was at her best in the NCAA DI Championships, sweeping the 800 meters indoors and outdoors. Indoors she ran 1:59.53 to move to No. 3 collegian all-time with the No. 4 performance all-time, while outdoors her collegiate PR of 1:59.61 to become No. 8 collegian all-time.