ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) announced the award winners for the 2024 UMAC Women’s Indoor Track & Field Championship on Thursday. The University of Northwestern Eagles led all teams with eight awards including two of the top honors. The Bethany Lutheran College Vikings, University of Wisconsin-Superior Yellowjackets, and Crown College Polars followed with six awards each.

Only results from the UMAC Indoor Championship meet count for consideration in the awards. The awards are nominated and voted on by the conference head coaches. All-Conference recognition is given to individuals who finished in first or second place in an individual event and to members of relay teams who finished in first place in a relay event at the UMAC Indoor Championship.

Bethany Lutheran's Stephanie Witbrod led the way at the UMAC Championship, recording 60 points to earn Top Scoring Athlete of the Meet honors. The Vikings junior was also voted the Field Athlete of the Meet. Witbrod won four events at the championship for Bethany Lutheran and placed top-five in eight events. The junior finished first in the Long Jump (5.05m), Shot Put (12.33m), Triple Jump (11.12m), and Weight Throw (14.17m), second in the 60 Hurdles (9.41) and 4x200 Relay (1:51.49), third in the High Jump (1.51m), and fifth in the 60 Meter (8.39).

Deanna Trucksess earned Track Athlete of the Meet honors for Northwestern. The Eagles' junior led all track contestants with 33 points at the UMAC Championship. Trucksess won four events for UNW, taking home the gold in the 60 Meter (8.19), 200 Meter (27.15), 4x200 Relay (1:50.06), and 4x400 Relay (4:16.51). She also finished as the runner-up in the 400 Meter with a time of 1:02.12.

Northwestern's Grace Moravchik was named the UMAC Rookie of the Year. The freshman earned the third-most overall points out of any competing athlete with 35 in her first collegiate championship meet. Moravchik finished in the top-three in six events for the Eagles, winning half of them. She won the 400 Meter (1:02.09), 4x200 Relay (1:50.06), and 4x400 Relay (4:16.51), was the runner up in the Long Jump (4.93m), and placed took third in 60 Hurdles (9.84) and the 200 Meter (27.33).

The Wisconsin-Superior Yellowjackets coaches earned Coaching Staff of the Year honors. The Yellowjackets, led by head coach Glen Drexler in his 14th season, won the UMAC Indoor Championship for the second year in a row and second time in program history with a 149-point performance.

The Crown Polars 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, including the championship event. Each team also had one representative named to the all-sportsmanship team.

TOP SCORING ATHLETE OF THE MEET
Stephanie Witbrod | Bethany Lutheran

TRACK ATHLETE OF THE MEET
Deanna Trucksess | Northwestern

FIELD ATHLETE OF THE MEET
Stephanie Witbrod | Bethany Lutheran

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Grace Moravchik | Northwestern

COACHING STAFF OF THE YEAR
Wisconsin-Superior Yellowjackets

TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD
Crown Polars
 
ALL-CONFERENCE
ALL-SPORTSMANSHIP  

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