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Birmingham CrossPlex
2337 Bessemer Rd. Birmingham AL 35208
Cameron Muh
| Posted: 11 Mar 2022 | Updated: 21 Mar 2022
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Courtney Wayment led BYU women's track and field on day one of the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships at the Birmingham CrossPlex on Friday, taking home an individual national title in the 5000-meters.
Wayment’s performance was the highlight of the night for BYU, as she won the 5000m with a time of 15:30.17. The senior ran in the front pack of four athletes for the majority of the race before pulling away in the final kilometer, holding off NC State's Katelyn Tuohy and Alabama’s Mercy Chelangat for the first-place finish.
Wayment’s title is the 10th indoor individual title in BYU women’s track and field history. She also becomes the second athlete in program history to earn a second indoor individual title and the first to do so in two different events. Wayment also won the 3000-meters at the 2021 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships.
Halley Folsom Walker began the day for the Cougars in pentathlon competition. The senior clocked a personal best time of 8.69 in the opening event, the 60-meter hurdles, but found herself at 14th overall heading into the fifth and final event, the 800-meters.
Folsom Walker’s late push in the final turn nearly earned her first place over the overall pentathlon winner, Florida’s Anna Hall, as the two crossed the finish line a mere two milliseconds apart. The 2:08.77 in the 800m and 4,201 overall points were both personal bests for the pentathlete, who jumped from 14th to 5th overall, earning First Team All-American honors.
"She didn't let her national ranking hamper her confidence," BYU Director of Track & Field Ed Eyestone said. "She rose up and had a very strong 800m. Superlative effort on her part."
Claire Seymour left no doubt in the 800m semifinals, finishing first in her heat and overall with a time of 2:03.48. Seymour’s first-place finish earned an automatic qualification to the final, scheduled for Saturday at 7:30 p.m. CST.
In the distance medley relay, the squad of Carmen Alder, Meghan Hunter, Lauren Ellsworth-Barnes and Kate Hunter placed ninth with a time of 11:06.64, good for Second Team All-American honors.
At the end of day one with six out of the 17 events scored, the BYU women stand in 5th place overall with 14 total points.
Three Cougars will compete on Saturday, March 12th, starting with Cierra Tidwell-Allphin in the high jump at 12:30 p.m. CST. Following Seymour’s 800m final, Wayment will race in the 3000m at 8 p.m. CST.
Joseph Hovey
| Posted: 8 Mar 2022 | Updated: 21 Mar 2022
Joseph Hovey
Birmingham Bound: Track and Field athletes compete for Indoor national titles beginning Friday
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PROVO, Utah — Seven BYU track and field athletes and a relay squad will compete at the 2022 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships at the CrossPlex in Birmingham, Alabama on Friday and Saturday, March 11-12.
Courtney Wayment, Claire Seymour, Cierra Tidwell-Allphin, Halley Folsom Walker and Cailee Faulkner will represent the BYU women. The women’s distance medley relay team will also compete, though the runners will not be announced prior to the event.
Wayment leads a veteran group of BYU women into the national meet. The senior distance runner from Layton, Utah won individual indoor national titles a year ago in the 3000m and as a member of the DMR team. Seymour and Folsom Walker were each named 2021 All-Americans as well.
While the women look to defend national titles, the BYU men’s qualifiers look to bring home their first pole vault title since 2002. Zach McWhorter and Caleb Witsken arrive in Birmingham among the top-10 pole vaulters in the nation. McWhorter has clung to the national lead throughout the season, and rides a BYU and Division I season-best 5.85m/19-2.25 clearance into the CrossPlex.
McWhorter finished runner-up and Witsken sixth in 2021, as both also garnered All-American honors.
Watch the Cougars compete for indoor track and field supremacy with live coverage windows on ESPN3 at 10 a.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. CST on Friday and 7 p.m. on Saturday. Live results will also be available throughout the weekend.
Friday Events
*All times CST // ^Final scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 12 (if qualified)
| Athlete | Event | Qualifying Time/Mark | Date Set | National Standing | Scheduled Event Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Halley Folsom Walker | Pentathlon | 4,118 | Jan. 20 | No. 12 | 10:20 a.m. - 3:40 p.m.* |
| Zach McWhorter | Men's Pole Vault | 5.85m/19-2.25 | Feb. 4 | No. 1 | 3 p.m. |
| Caleb Witsken | Men's Pole Vault | 5.55m/18-2.5 | Feb. 25 | No. 7 | 3 p.m. |
| Cailee Faulkner | Women's Pole Vault | 4.36m/14-3.75 | Feb. 25 | T-15 | 6:45 p.m. |
| Claire Seymour | Women's 800m Semifinal^ | 2:04.03 | Feb. 12 | T-7 | 7:45 p.m. |
| Courtney Wayment | Women's 5000m | 15:15.46 | Dec. 4 | No. 1 | 8:05 p.m. |
| Women's DMR Team | Distance Medley Relay | 10:58.37 | Feb. 11 | No. 6 | 8:45 p.m. |
Saturday Events
*All times CST
| Athlete | Event | Qualifying Time/Mark | Date Set | National Standing | Scheduled Event Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cierra Tidwell-Allphin | Women's High Jump | 1.86m/6-1.25 | Feb. 11 | T-8 | 12:30 p.m.* |
| Claire Semyour | Women's 800m | 2:04.03 | Feb. 12 | T-7 | 7:30 p.m. |
| Courtney Wayment | Women's 3000m | 8:50.05 | Jan. 29 | No. 2 | 8 p.m. |
BYU Track and Field Indoor Nationals history
- 21 individual national champions (12 men, nine women)
- 67 men's indoor All-Americans dating back to 1967
- 159 women's indoor All-Americans dating back to 1980
- Highest men's team finish: 3rd (2011)
- 22 top-20 finishes
- 10 top-10
- 3 top-5
- Highest women's team finish: 3rd (2009)
- 27 top-20 finishes
- 12 top-10
- Three top-5
- 2021 team results
- Men: 16th
- Women: 7th
