Rookies headline 2022 UMAC Women's Indoor Track and Field awards
ST. PAUL, Minn.--- The 2022 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Women’s Indoor Track and Field Championship was dominated by outstanding performances from rookie competitors across the board. The top four athlete awards went to two first-year participants while champion University of Minnesota Morris head coach Josh Kuusisto was selected as the Coach of the Year, it was announced Wednesday.
Bethany Lutheran College standout Stephanie Witbrod collected three awards including Top Scoring Athlete of the Meet, Field Athlete of the Meet and Rookie of the Year. University of Northwestern sprinter Deanna Trucksess was named the Track Athlete of the Meet after sweeping the sprint titles.
Witbrod made her mark on the UMAC early with a meet for the ages compiling 49 points for the Vikings with participation and scoring in eight different events. She added the most impact in the field events scoring 38 total points in five of the six field events offered – pole vault is the only event she did not compete in. The rookie took first place in all three jumps, finished third in the shot put and seventh in the weight throw.
In the jumps, Witbrod started the meet with a win in the high jump Friday clearing 1.51 meters (4-11.5) to better her season-best mark. She followed up later in the day with a win in the long jump with another season-best mark of 4.81 meters (15-9.5). Witbrod took the third-and-final jump crown Saturday with a triple jump mark of 10.57 meters (34-8.25).
On the track, Witbrod finished with the second-fastest prelim time in the 60-meter hurdles at 10.16 before posting a time of 9.81 to place second and add her fourth all-conference finish of the meet. The rookie also led off on the Vikings' 4 x 200-meter relay squad and anchored the team's second-place 4 x 400-meter finish.
Fellow rookie Trucksess of Northwestern stole the show, though, on the track in her first collegiate championship. The sprinter swept the sprints starting with a time of 1:02.65 in the 400-meter dash Friday that was less than two-tenths of a second faster than the runner-up. She won the 60-meter dash Saturday with a time of 8.26 that was an improvement from her prelim time of 8.36. Trucksess finished the sweep with a 200-meter dash time of 27.87. She also led off the Eagles' second-place 4 x 200-meter relay and anchored their third-place 4 x 400-meter relay.
Kuusisto was selected as the Coach of the Year by his peers for the second year in a row following the Cougars' dominant 72-point team victory. His squad compiled 223 points behind seven event victories including a sweep of the relay events. Minnesota Morris won its second-straight UMAC women's indoor championship behind all-conference performances from 12 student-athletes.
Trucksess and Witbrod led a group of 12 individuals who earned all-conference recognition – first or second place in an individual event or part of a first-place relay – in at least two events. The 10 others include Maddie Carrington (Minnesota Morris), Alexxa DeQuevedo (University of Wisconsin-Superior), Elizabeth Frias (Minnesota Morris), Hailey Gill (Minnesota Morris), Grace Hambike (Minnesota Morris), Landwer (Minnesota Morris), Elizabeth Lofstad (North Central University), Kim Peters (Minnesota Morris) and Kayla Tobin (Bethany Lutheran).
North Central won the team sportsmanship award, an accolade that is selected by the UMAC coaches and awarded to the team that best represents sportsmanship throughout the entire season. Each team also had one representative named to the individual sportsmanship award list.
Top Scoring Athlete of the Meet Award – Stephanie Witbrod, Fy., Bethany Lutheran
Track Athlete of the Meet Award – Deanna Trucksess, Fy., Northwestern
Field Athlete of the Meet Award – Stephanie Witbrod, Fy., Bethany Lutheran
Rookie of the Year Award – Stephanie Witbrod, Fy., Bethany Lutheran
Coach of the Year Award – Josh Kuusisto, Minnesota Morris
UMAC All-Conference
| Name |
Event(s) |
School |
Year |
Hometown/High School |
| Anna Brueckner |
400-meter Dash (2nd) |
Crown |
So. |
Swanton, Vt./Homeschool |
| Maddie Carrington |
800-meter Run (1st), Mile Run (1st)
4 x 400-meter Relay (1st), Distance Medley Relay (1st) |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Morris, Minn./Morris |
| Alexxa DeQuevedo |
60-meter Hurdles (1st), 200-meter Dash (2nd) |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Silver Bay, Minn./William Kelley |
| Elizabeth Frias |
4 x 200-meter Relay (1st), 4 x 400-meter Relay (1st) |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Bell, Calif. |
| Hailey Gill |
Weight Throw (1st), Shot Put (2nd) |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Alexandria, Minn./Alexandria |
| Lydia Gross |
4 x 200-meter Relay (1st) |
Minnesota Morris |
So. |
Moorhead, Minn./Moorhead |
| Grace Hambike |
4 x 200-meter Relay (1st), 4 x 400-meter Relay (1st) |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Brooklyn Park, Minn./Robbinsdale Cooper |
| Briahna Hensel |
3,000-meter Run (2nd), Distance Medley Relay (1st) |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Cottage Grove, Minn./Park |
| Chloe Higgins |
60-meter Dash (2nd) |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Lakeland, Fla./Superior |
| Ilsa Hoaglund |
5,000-meter Run (2nd) |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Coon Rapids, Minn./Coon Rapids |
| Kasha Hughlett |
Weight Throw (2nd) |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Maple, Wis./Northwestern |
| Emily Jackson |
Long Jump (2nd) |
Bethany Lutheran |
Fy. |
Castalian Springs, Tenn./Trousdale County |
| Kaitlyn Ladwig |
Distance Medley Relay (1st) |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Granite Falls, Minn./Yellow Medicine East |
| Maggie Landwer |
4 x 400-meter Relay (1st), Pole Vault (2nd) |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Gilbert, Minn./Eveleth-Gilbert |
| Elizabeth Lofstad |
Mile Run (2nd), Triple Jump (2nd) |
North Central |
So. |
Circle Pines, Minn./Centennial |
| Jenica Moes |
Shot Put (1st) |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Kranzburg, S.D./Watertown |
| Abby Pausch |
800-meter Run (2nd) |
Crown |
Jr. |
Sleepy Eye, Minn./Homeschool |
| Kim Peters |
4 x 200-meter Relay (1st), Distance Medley Relay (1st) |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Eagan, Minn./Eastview |
| Jasmine Terry |
High Jump (2nd) |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee |
| Skyla Thompson |
Pole Vault (1st) |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
Sturgeon Lake, Minn./Moose Lake |
| Kayla Tobin |
3,000-meter Run (1st), 5,000-meter Run (1st) |
Bethany Lutheran |
Fy. |
Watertown, Wis./Homeschool |
| Deanna Trucksess |
60-meter Dash (1st), 200-meter Dash (1st), 400-meter Dash (1st) |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
Spirit Lake, Iowa/Spirit Lake |
| Stephanie Witbrod |
60-meter Hurdles (2nd), High Jump (1st), Long Jump (1st), Triple Jump (1st) |
Bethany Lutheran |
Fy. |
Douglas, Wy./Douglas |
UMAC Event Champions
| Name |
Event(s) |
School |
Year |
Hometown/High School |
| Maddie Carrington |
800-meter Run, Mile Run
4 x 400-meter Relay, Distance Medley Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Morris, Minn./Morris |
| Alexxa DeQuevedo |
60-meter Hurdles |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Silver Bay, Minn./William Kelley |
| Elizabeth Frias |
4 x 200-meter Relay, 4 x 400-meter Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Bell, Calif. |
| Hailey Gill |
Weight Throw |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Alexandria, Minn./Alexandria |
| Lydia Gross |
4 x 400-meter Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
So. |
Moorhead, Minn./Moorhead |
| Grace Hambike |
4 x 200-meter Relay, 4 x 400-meter Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Brooklyn Park, Minn./Robbinsdale Cooper |
| Briahna Hensel |
Distance Medley Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Cottage Grove, Minn./Park |
| Kaitlyn Ladwig |
Distance Medley Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Granite Falls, Minn./Yellow Medicine East |
| Maggie Landwer |
4 x 400-meter Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Gilbert, Minn./Eveleth-Gilbert |
| Jenica Moes |
Shot Put |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Kranzburg, S.D./Watertown |
| Kim Peters |
4 x 200-meter Relay, Distance Medley Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Eagan, Minn./Eastview |
| Skyla Thompson |
Pole Vault |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
Sturgeon Lake, Minn./Moose Lake |
| Kayla Tobin |
3,000-meter Run, 5,000-meter Run |
Bethany Lutheran |
Fy. |
Watertown, Wis./Homeschool |
| Deanna Trucksess |
60-meter Dash, 200-meter Dash, 400-meter Dash |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
Spirit Lake, Iowa/Spirit Lake |
| Stephanie Witbrod |
High Jump, Long Jump, Triple Jump |
Bethany Lutheran |
Fy. |
Douglas, Wy./Douglas |
UMAC Sportsmanship Awards
Team Award – North Central
Bethany Lutheran – Jasmine Bejaron, Sr., Elk Grove, Calif./Laguna Creek
Crown – Anna Brueckner, So., Swanton, Vt./Homeschool
Minnesota-Morris – Grace Hambike, Fy., Brooklyn Park, Minn./Robbinsdale Cooper
North Central – Kayley Hyland, Fy., Woodbury, Minn.
Northwestern – Micah Ngafua, Fy., Andover, Minn.
Wisconsin-Superior – Jess Newman, Jr., Wanamingo, Minn./Pine Island