Spencer, Kipp & Cuffe Added to the May Women's Watch List for The Bowerman Trophy

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Spencer, Kipp & Cuffe Added to the May Women's Watch List for The Bowerman Trophy
May 8, 2014


NEW ORLEANS – Two women familiar to The Bowerman Watch List rejoined the May edition of the top-10 contenders list for collegiate track & field’s highest individual honor, along with a Watch List newcomer.

Two-time The Bowerman semifinalist Ashley Spencer of Texas and Shalaya Kipp of Colorado made triumphant returns to the Women’s Watch List released Thursday, along with first-time member Aisling Cuffe of Stanford.


The Bowerman Women’s Watch List – May 2014
(Click student-athletes’ names for biographies & Notes)


NAME YEAR SCHOOL EVENTS HOMETOWN
Dezerea Bryant JR Kentucky Sprints Milwaukee, Wis.
Aisling Cuffe JR Stanford Distance Cornwall-on-Hudson, N.Y.
Abbey D’Agostino SR Dartmouth Distance Topsfield, Mass.
Phyllis Francis SR Oregon Mid-Distance Queens, N.Y.
Kendra Harrison JR Kentucky Hurdles/Sprints Clayton, N.C.
Shalaya Kipp SR Colorado Distance Salt Lake City, Utah
Laura Roesler SR Oregon Mid-Distance Fargo, N.D.
Ashley Spencer JR Texas Sprints Indianapolis, Ind.
Shelbi Vaughan SO Texas A&M Throws Mansfield, Texas
Kendell Williams FR Georgia Combined Events Marietta, Ga.

Also Receiving Votes:Morolake Akinosun (Texas); Kamara Brown (Texas A&M); Kearsten Peoples (MIssouri); Kaitlin Petrillose (Texas); Julia Ratcliffe (Princeton)






Certainly no stranger to the Watch List as a semifinalist for The Bowerman in both 2012 and 2013 with eight Watch List appearances under her belt, Spencer is back among the top 10 for the first time since before the NCAA Indoor Championships.

The two-time defending outdoor 400 meters champion posted the top collegiate 200 meters performance of the year and the No. 2 time at 400 meters this past weekend after the week prior anchoring her Longhorns’ 4×400 relay squad to a Penn Relays record.

Teammates Morolake Akinosun and Kaitlin Petrillose dropped from the Watch List proper to the "also receiving votes" category.

Depending how the NCAA Championships qualification process shakes out, Spencer could potentially see a number of current Watch List members in Eugene, Ore., from June 11-14, including a rematch with Oregon’s Phyllis Francis. Spencer fell to Francis in both the 400 meters and the national-team-title-clinching 4×400 relay at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Other current Watch Listers against whom she could potentially square off come NCAAs either in an individual or relay setting are indoor 200 meters champion Dezerea Bryant and Kendra Harrison of Kentucky and Laura Roesler of Oregon – a member of that 4×400 relay team that edged out Texas for the national team title – as well as Kamaria Brown of Texas A&M, who this month dropped into the "also receiving votes" category for the first time this season.

Each of those potential rivalries will have a significant impact not only on the battle for The Bowerman Trophy, but the national team championship race. Of the top six teams in the nation, only No. 1 Florida is without a representative on the list.

No. 2 Texas has Spencer (with Akinosun and Petrillose receiving votes); No. 3 Oregon has Francis and Roesler; No. 4 Texas A&M has collegiate discus leader Shelbi Vaughan (and Brown receiving votes); No. 5 Kentucky has Bryant and Harrison; and No. 6 Georgia is represented by collegiate heptathlon leader Kendell Williams.

Kipp rejoined the Watch List for the first time since the February edition. Having now won her 2014 debut in her signature 3000-meter steeplechase at the Payton Jordan Invitational in collegiate-leading fashion, she returned to the top 10 for the third time in her career.

Newcomer Cuffe caught the attention of the track & field community when she became the third-fastest performer in collegiate history and the second-fastest American-born collegian with a 15:11.13 at the Payton Jordan Invitational.

That performance surpassed the career best of reigning two-time defending outdoor 5000 meters champion Abbey D’Agostino of Dartmouth, who now leads all active women with 11 Watch List appearances.

Joining Akinosun, Brown and Petrillose as additional vote-earners outside the top 10 are throwers Kearsten Peoples of Missouri and Julia Ratcliffe of Princeton.

Both the SEC and the Pac-12 checked in with four representatives each, boosting their all-time appearance totals to 119 and 104, respectively – top two among conferences on the women’s list.

Biographies on each of the members of the Watch List can be found here.



ABOUT THE BOWERMAN
The Bowerman Trophy, which was first awarded in 2009, is presented annually by the USTFCCCA to the most outstanding male and female collegiate track & field athletes in the nation.

Indiana’s Derek Drouin and Clemson’s Brianna Rollins are the reigning winners of The Bowerman, which is named for legendary Oregon track & field and cross country coach Bill Bowerman. In addition to their collegiate achievements, Rollins is the reigning World Champion in the 100 meter hurdles — an event for which she also holds the American Record — while Drouin has won bronze medals at both the 2012 Olympics and 2013 IAAF World Championships.

Past winners include Olympic gold medalist, World Champion and decathlon world-record holder Ashton Eaton (2010); 10,000-meter Olympic silver medalist Galen Rupp (2009); and 2011 IAAF World Champion at 1500 meters, Jenny Simpson (2009).

In total, the winners from the award’s first four years have won three Olympic Medals, six World Championships (one relay, two indoor) and 11 World Championships medals (two relay, one indoor). When considering finalists for the award, 13 individuals have earned a combined six Olympic medals, eight World Championships (one relay, four indoor) and 23 World Championships medals (three realy, six indoor).

Former winners of and finalists for The Bowerman currently hold 21 national records. Each former winner of the men’s Bowerman Trophy holds at least two national records, while two of the five women’s winners are current national record-holders.

Bowerman served the sport of track and field in numerous ways. His leadership in the USTFCCCA’s predecessor organization, the National Collegiate Track Coaches Association, and his contributions to NCAA track and field and the running community as a whole are among his many lasting legacies.

For more information on The Bowerman, the award, the trophy and Bill Bowerman himself, visit TheBowerman.org.



ABOUT THE USTFCCCA
The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) is a non-profit professional organization representing cross country and track & field coaches of all levels. The organization represents over 8,000 coaching members encompassing 94% of all NCAA track & field programs (DI, DII, and DIII) and includes members representing the NAIA as well as a number of state high school coaches associations. The USTFCCCA serves as an advocate for cross country and track & field coaches, providing a leadership structure to assist the needs of a diverse membership, serving as a lobbyist for coaches’ interests, and working as a liaison between the various stakeholders in the sports of cross country and track & field.





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Contact: Kyle Terwillegar
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kyle@ustfccca.org
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