GREENSBORO, N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference recognized individual award winners for the 2022 Outdoor Track and Field season on Thursday.
Florida State leads all schools with three honorees, as voted upon by the league’s head coaches, followed by two from Virginia. Louisville, Miami, NC State, and Virginia Tech each had one student-athlete or coach recognized.
The list of conference award winners includes four NCAA champions, five ACC champions and seven first-team All-ACC honorees.
MEN’S TRACK PERFORMER OF THE YEAR
Trey Cunningham, Florida State
WOMEN’S TRACK PERFORMER OF THE YEAR
Katelyn Tuohy, NC State
MEN’S FIELD PERFORMER OF THE YEAR
Claudio Romero, Virginia
WOMEN’S FIELD PERFORMER OF THE YEAR
Gabriela Leon, Louisville
MEN’S CO-FRESHMEN OF THE YEAR
Sean Watkins Jr., Florida State
Kahleje Tillmon, Virginia Tech
WOMEN’S FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Mia Barnett, Virginia
MEN’S COACH OF THE YEAR
Bob Braman, Florida State
WOMEN’S COACH OF THE YEAR
Amy Deem, Miami
Florida State’s Cunningham won all 10 of his 110 men’s hurdles races this outdoor season. He posted a time of 13.22 or faster in nine of those events, becoming the first athlete in NCAA history to do so. The grad student from Winfield, Alabama, equaled the second-fastest time in NCAA history (13.00) at the NCAA Outdoor Championships on his way to a national title. The 13.00 time also matched the ACC record first set in 1979 by Maryland’s Renaldo Nehemiah.
In addition to Thursday’s accolade, Cunningham is a Bowerman semifinalist. He was named the Men’s Outdoor National Athlete of the Year by Track and Field News and the South Region Track Male Athlete of the Year by the USTFCCCA.
NC State’s Tuohy claimed her first NCAA individual crown in 2022, winning the 5000m title handily with a time of 15:18.39. Tuohy also won the ACC 1500m title and was the ACC runner-up in the 5000m. The Stony Point, New York, native posted three event PRs this season that also stand as school records and rank in the top 10 all-time collegiately. Her time of 4:06.84 in 1500 meters ranks seventh, while her 15:14.61 time in 5000 meters ranks eighth and is also the ACC record.
Tuohy was part of the Wolfpack’s 4x1500m relay squad that ran the second-fastest time in collegiate history (16:55.19). She did not place lower than second in any race of her outdoor season.
Virginia’s Romero, who hails from Santiago, Chile, capped an undefeated season and won the discus title at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a throw of 66.17 meters (217-1). That was one of his five throws this season that sailed farther than 65 meters. Romero hit his PR of 67.02 meters (219-11) to win the event at the prestigious Penn Relays.
Louisville’s Leon, who hails from Grand Rapids, Michigan, took the gold medal in the women’s pole vault at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a clearance of 4.60 meters (15-1), which was only the second 15-foot or better winning mark in meet history. Earlier this season, Leon topped 4.61 meters (15-1.5) at the Clark Wood Invitational and became just the fourth female vaulter in collegiate history to climb 4.60m (15-1) or higher three different times in a season.
Romero and Leon were both named 2022 Southeast Region Field Athletes of the Year by the USTFCCCA.
Florida State’s Watkins took the bronze medal in the 400-meter dash at the ACC Championships in 45.74, an improvement of 1.5 seconds off his time in the event at the outset of the season. The Opa Locka, Florida, freshman also ran a leg on the Seminoles’ 4x400m relay team that took the silver medal at the ACC finals with a time of 3:05.83 and went on the place 16th at the NCAAs.
After walking on last fall and earning a full scholarship this spring, Virginia Tech’s Tillmon was the ACC champion in the 200 meters, breaking the Hokies’ 10-year-old school record with a time of 20.41. The Tucker, Georgia, native also ran the opening leg on Virginia Tech’s 4x100m relay all season, helping the Hokies to their first ACC title in the event in school history (38.69) and second-team All-America honors at the NCAAs (38.99).
Virginia’s Barnett secured second-team all-conference honors with her fourth-place time of 4:12.23 in the 1500 meters at this year’s ACC Championships. The La Crescenta, California, freshman’s regular-season time of 4:11.32 on April 23 was the then sixth-fastest in NCAA history. Barnett posted the fastest 800-meter and 1500-meter times by a freshman in Virginia history, and her 1500-meter time ranks second overall. She also helped the Cavaliers to a fourth-place finish in the DMR at the Penn Relays with a strong anchor leg that pushed UVA up three spots from the No. 7 position.
Braman’s Men’s Outdoor Track and Field Coach of the Year honor is his 28th overall ACC coaching accolade in track & field (indoor and outdoor) and cross country with FSU. The Seminole men won their 14th team championship, 12 of which have come under Braman’s watch.
FSU's 149 points and 56-point margin of victory are the most by an ACC men's champion since the conference expanded to its current 15 teams. The Seminoles held a four-point lead heading into the final day of competition and then pulled away to win big.
FSU then led all ACC teams at the NCAA finals with a fourth-place team finish, their highest at the Outdoor Track and Field Championships since 2012.
Miami’s Deem has led the Hurricanes to all four of their ACC Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Miami’s most recent conference title prior to this season came in 2018 as the host team in Coral Gables.
The Hurricanes led this year’s Championship standings with 108 points, 6.5 ahead of host second-place Duke. Miami’s women entered Saturday of this year’s meet in the middle of the pack of the team standings, but consistent showings across the board pushed the Hurricanes to the top by the meet’s end.
This year marks the fourth time Deem has been recognized as the ACC Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Coach of the Year, and it is her eighth overall ACC coaching honor.