Tinch runs wind-aided 12.87 in 110-meter hurdles for fastest all-conditions effort in collegiate history, adds victories in high jump and long jump to help Gorillas also complete indoor and outdoor sweep; Olson, Walker win championships on final day for Azusa Pacific, with Childress, Deysel and West Texas A&M men’s 4x100 all achieving Division 2 records

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Cordell Tinch had another opportunity at completing the trifecta, and his three wins – including the fastest 110-meter hurdles race under all conditions in collegiate history – propelled Pittsburg State to a men’s title in a third consecutive season with 62 points.

APU once again became “Day 3-PU”, as Azusa Pacific scored 55 of its 66 points over the final 13 events to capture a second women’s crown in three years at the NCAA Division 2 Outdoor Championships at Neta and Eddie DeRose Thunderbowl Stadium in Pueblo, Colo.

RESULTS | INTERVIEWS

In addition to Tinch becoming the first male athlete in Division 2 history to secure three individual victories in the same championship meet, Saginaw Valley State’s Cheyenne Wiliamson increased her career total to nine national titles, including a third heptathlon crown and first high jump victory, with Grand Valley State’s Judith Essemiah winning a third consecutive women’s hammer throw championship and Academy of Art’s Marie-Jeanne Ourega achieving a three-peat in the women’s long jump, as well as Angelo State’s Devoux Deysel, Pittsburg State’s Auna Childress and the men’s 4x100 relay from West Texas A&M all achieving Division 2 records.

Winona State’s Lindsay Cunningham doubled in the women’s 5,000 and 10,000, with Divonne Franklin of California University in Pennsylvania and Makanakaishe Charamba of Carson Newman both securing sprint sweeps by capturing 100 and 200 championships.

Despite one extended lightning delay Friday and several wind-aided performances, the first outdoor final at Colorado State-Pueblo in a decade was one of the most memorable in Division 2 history.

Tinch triumphed in the 110 hurdles in 12.87 seconds, aided by a +6.0 m/s wind, for the best all-conditions race by any collegiate competitor, eclipsing the wind-aided mark of 12.91 (+3.5 m/s) established by Maryland’s Renaldo Nehemiah at the 1979 Division 1 Championships at Hayward Field in Oregon.

Only fellow Americans Aries Merritt, Grant Holloway and Devon Allen have run faster than Tinch, under all conditions, in global history.

With the men’s high jump competition being contested simultaneously as the 110 hurdles final, Tinch left the event having cleared 6-10.25 (2.09m) and returned facing an attempt at 7-1.75 (2.18m). Following one miss, Tinch decided to pass to 7-3 (2.21m) and cleared the bar on his second attempt to capture the title. Tinch opened his schedule with a meet-record 26-9.25 (8.16m) in the long jump to elevate to the No. 3 wind-legal competitor in division history.

Pittsburg State also scored in four additional events, along with supporting Tinch in the 110 hurdles, as teammates TJ Caldwell and Daylin Williams finished fourth and seventh, respectively, to become the first men’s outdoor repeat champion since Saint Augustine’s won five in a row from 2013-17.

The Gorillas also completed a sweep of indoor and outdoor team titles, the first men’s program to achieve the feat since Ashland in 2019.

West Texas A&M, on the strength of victories from Joseph Manu, Jerry Jakpa, Jalen Purcell and Isaac Botsio in the 4x100 relay in a Division 2 record 38.70 seconds – taking down the Saint Augustine’s 2013 standard of 38.91 – and a 4x400 triumph from Ohdel James, Jamarcus Birks, Brien Pittman and Quinton Sansing, placed second with 47 points.

Adams State, led by Awet Beraki winning the 5,000 in 14:13.69 and placing second in the 10,000 (29:59.71), along with Papay Glaywulu taking the triple jump crown with a leap of 53 feet (16.15m), was third with 44 points.

Grand Valley State edged Missouri Southern State and Lincoln (Missouri) for the final podium spot by a half-point margin, with Jacob Urban capturing the hammer throw championship for the Lakers with a 216-8 (66.05m) effort to contribute to their 34.5-point performance.

Azusa Pacific, which rallied on the final day to win its first women’s team championship in 2021 at Grand Valley State, opened Saturday with Molly Olson capturing the javelin crown with a lifetime-best 165-10 (50.54m), added another title with veteran Jaylah Walker prevailing in the 400-meter hurdles in 57.61 and punctuated its victory with a runner-up finish in the 4x400 in 3:34.48.

The Cougars’ triumph was even more impressive considering heptathlon contender Nicole Warwick was unable to complete the first day as a result of left hamstring injury and didn’t compete the rest of the meet, in addition to freshman Esther Conde-Turpin – entered in five events – only scoring in the 100-meter hurdles with a third-place finish in a wind-aided 13.14, just ahead of Walker at 13.32, and as part of the 4x400 relay, with Walker, Alayna Verner and Kiayra Holmes.

But Alysa Henry earned All-America honors in the heptathlon with a third-place finish with 5,551 points and supported Olson with a sixth-place effort in the javelin with a throw of 152-8 (46.55m), in addition to Verner securing second in the 400 in 52.78 and being part of a fourth-place finish in the 4x100 in 44.72, along with Eliana Saunders contributing a fifth-place effort in the high jump at 5-7.25 (1.71m).

Minnesota State from Mankato placed second with 57 points, led by Denisha Cartwright winning the 100 hurdles in a wind-aided 12.94 (+4.9 m/s) to become the seventh female athlete in division history to run sub-13 under all conditions.

Cartwright, representing the Bahamas, also placed second in the 200 in a wind-aided 23.10, finished fourth in the 100 in a wind-aided 11.13 and contributed to a runner-up performance in the 4x100 relay in 44.21.

Lexi Hurst also triumphed in the shot put for the Mavericks with a fifth-round mark of 53-10.25 (16.41m).

West Texas A&M took third with 49 points, led by Italian athlete Eleonora Curtabbi repeating in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 10:22.76, as well as Florance Uwajeneza taking third in the 10,000 and fourth in the 5,000.

Despite having only six athletes competing, including four on the fifth-place 4x400 relay, Winona State placed fourth with 38 points.

Cunningham clocked 16:23.08 to win the 5,000 and 33:55.79 to triumph in the 10,000 – prevailing against Adams State’s Brianna Robles (16:25.42 and 34:08.25) in both events – in addition to Malaysian athlete Shereen Vallaboy overcoming a positive test for COVID-19 the week before the meet to complete a run of back-to-back indoor and outdoor titles in the 400 by clocking 52.74.

Pittsburg State was seventh at 32 points, with Childress providing a big highlight with her wind-legal performance of 43-10.50 (13.37m) in the fifth round to surpass her previous record effort of 43-8 (13.31m) on April 22 at the Pittsburg State Tune-Up.

Kyla Davis added another title for Pittsburg State, winning the women’s pole vault with a 13-9.25 (4.20m) clearance on her first attempt.

Deysel, representing South Africa, was unable to defend his 2021 javelin title last year as a result of injuries, but was unable to persevere despite additional setbacks early in the spring to achieve a second-round throw of 259-8 (79.14m), ascending into the top 30 competitors in collegiate history.

Deysel had a pair of throws that were superior to the 1996 standard of 256-1 (78.06m) achieved by Ashland’s Kirt Thompson, capping his series with a final-round 257-11 (78.61m).

Fresno Pacific’s Dejan Mileusnic, representing Bosnia-Herzegovina, was second at 254-7 (77.60m) to improve to the No. 4 competitor in Division 2 history and Missouri Southern State’s Rajheim Carby, competing for Jamaica, elevating to No. 9 all-time in the division by taking third at 244-9 (74.61m).

Angelo State also received back-to-back decathlon victories from Elvis Kryukov, representing Cyprus, who improved to No. 16 in division history with 7,678 points. Azusa Pacific’s Aaron Worrell, representing Barbados, placed second with 7,504 points.

The opportunity for Angelo State to contend for a team podium finish took a significant hit when Moroccan athlete Oussama El Bouchayby, who is transferring to Alabama in the fall, did not compete, resulting in the Rams losing valuable points in the 800 and 4x400 relay.

Wes Ferguson of Nebraska-Kearney, who won both indoor and outdoor 800 titles last year and placed runner-up behind El Bouchayby at the March 11 indoor final in Virginia Beach, triumphed in 1:45.46 to become the No. 3 competitor in Division 2 history.

Essemiah, a Dutch competitor, became only the second female athlete in the division to win three consecutive hammer throw titles, joining Heavin Warner of Central Missouri from 2014-16, prevailing with a second-round effort of 211 feet (64.31m).

Ourega, representing France, followed three in a row in the long jump by West Texas A&M’s Fatim Affessi from 2017-19 by winning three straight as well, achieving a wind-legal mark of 21-2.50 (6.46m) in the fourth round.

Williamson ascended to the No. 4 heptathlon competitor in Division 2 history with her meet-record 5,861 points, becoming the first three-time winner, as well as the first female athlete to capture a combined five championships in the multi-events, including two in the indoor pentathlon.

She also cleared 5-9.75 (1.77m) in the high jump to capture a ninth NCAA crown, including indoor titles in the 60-meter hurdles and long jump, as well as a 4x400-meter relay victory in 2021.

Williamson also placed seventh in the 100 hurdles final in 13.51 and earned eighth in the long jump with a 19-11.75 (6.09m) effort.

Arika Harbo of Concordia-St. Paul, a three-time Division 2 high jump champion, cleared a lifetime-best 6-0 (1.83m) in the heptathlon to propel her to a personal-best 5,445 points and a fourth-place finish, but only managed 5-8.50 (1.74m) in the high jump final to place second. 

Charamaba, representing Zimbabwe, produced wind-aided performances of 10.02 in the 100 and 20.19 in the 200, matching the success of Ghanaian athlete Benjamin Azamati-Kwaku from West Texas A&M in 2021.

Franklin became the first female athlete since Rene Medley of Lincoln (Missouri) in 2019 to capture both the 100 and 200 championships, achieving wind-aided marks of 11.09 and 22.77.

Hannah Woelfling of Millersville won the women’s discus title with an opening-round throw of 167 feet (50.91m). Woelfling, who also placed second in the hammer throw final at 203-4 (61.98m), had to endure a 75-minute lightning delay that halted competition Friday in the sixth round with only seven throws remaining.

Ukeyvia Beckwith of Embry-Riddle won the women’s 800 in 2:06.73, with German athlete Celine Ritter of Lee (Tennessee) capturing the 1,500 in 4:36.09, before returning to take third in the 5,000 in 16:43.39.

Shantae George, Shenese Walker, Hughasia Fyffe and Jovanna Gustave led Lincoln (Missouri) to the 4x100 title in 44.20.

Chloe Saenz, Luisarys Toledo, Jaedy Commins and Tiffany Hughey led Northwest Missouri State to the 4x400 crown in 3:33.44.

Reece Smith repeated for Northwest Missouri State in the men’s 3,000 steeplechase, overcoming a fall on the final water jump to regroup and triumph in 9:07.03. Smith also secured sixth in the 5,000 in 14:33.29.

Harding captured a pair of men’s individual titles, with Dakarai Bush winning the 400 in 45.67 and Ukrainian athlete Vlad Malykhin clearing 17-10.50 (5.45m) on his third attempt in the pole vault.

Peyton Barton of Missouri Southern State won the men’s discus with a 190-10 (58.16m) effort in the fifth round, along with placing second in the hammer throw with a third-round mark of 212 feet (64.62m).

Ralph Casper of West Chester, the 2021 indoor champion representing Tiffin, elevated from sixth place to leader in the fifth round of the men’s shot put with a 63-2.75 (19.27m) effort on the way to capturing his first career outdoor crown.

Jan Lukas Becker of Mississippi College, a German athlete who transferred from Queens (North Carolina), triumphed in the 10,000 in 29:47.71.

Troy Whyte of Lincoln (Missouri), representing Jamaica, was victorious in the 400 hurdles, relying on a late surge to triumph in 49.79. Whyte also contributed to Lincoln finishing second in the 4x400 in 3:06.84.

Luke Julian of Colorado School of Mines prevailed in a tactical men’s 1,500 final in 3:53.98.