The Big 12 Indoor Track & Field Individual Award honorees were named as six individuals earned honors.
KC Lightfoot (Baylor), Divine Oduduru (Texas Tech) and Head Coach Wes Kittley (Texas Tech) garnered recognition on the men’s side. For the women, Kynnedy Flannel (Texas), Sharon Lokedi (Kansas) and Edrick Floreal (Texas) were recipients.
Baylor’s Lightfoot (Men’s Outstanding Freshman of the Year) knocked off last year’s Big 12 Indoor Track & Field Championship winner for a first place finish in the Pole Vault. He tied his own Baylor school record at the championship, matching a mark of 18-7.5 (5.68m) that he set during the season.
Oduduru (Men’s Performer of the Year) captured two titles at the Big 12 IT&F Championship (60m and 200m), capping off a Big 12 Co-High Point award winning outing. His time in the 200-meter dash (20.08) is ranked as the No. 1 time in the world and is the second-fastest time in the history of collegiate track. The Nigerian native owns the Big 12 indoor championship meet record.
On the women’s side, Flannel (Women’s Freshman of the Year) set her personal best at the Clemson Invitational in January, running 22.88 to vault to the top of the NCAA rankings in the event. She currently sits at No. 3 as she enters the NCAA Championships. The rookie ran a 22.89 in the 200-meter dash, hoisting her to Big 12 Indoor Track & Field Championship gold.
KU’s Lokedi (Women’s Performer of the Year) closed out her senior season by winning her 11th and 12th Big 12 titles at the 2019 Big 12 Indoor Championship. Her gold medal performance in the 3,000-meter race solidified her as a back-to-back champion in the event, while she also registered a first place finish in the 5,000-meter run.
Both Floreal and Kittley led their respective teams to consecutive No. 1 finishes at the Big 12 Indoor Track & Field Championship. Texas Tech recorded the most points by a winning team at the conference meet (179) under Kittley, while UT’s Floreal saw gold in his first season as the leader of the Longhorns.
Next up for both the coaches and the student-athletes is a trip to Birmingham, Alabama, for the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships. The national event is set to run from Friday, March 8, to Saturday, March 9.
Indoor Track & Field Individual Award Honorees
Men
KC Lightfoot, Baylor (Outstanding Freshman of the Year)
Divine Oduduru, Texas Tech, Jr. (Performer of the Year)
Wes Kittley, Texas Tech (Coach of the Year)
Women
Kynnedy Flannel, Texas (Outstanding Freshman of the Year)
Sharon Lokedi, Kansas, Sr. (Performer of the Year)
Edrick Floreal, Texas (Coach of the Year)