The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
No. 4/10 Track and Field collects USTFCCCA, Big 12 recognition
03.06.2020 | Track & Field / Cross Country
Head coach Edrick Floréal, sprinter Julien Alfred and heptathlete Leo Neugebauer were all honored on Friday.
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Track and Field head coach Edrick Floréal was unanimously voted the Big 12 Women's Indoor Coach of the Year and was named the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) South Central Region Women's Coach of the Year on Friday. Two of his student-athletes – sophomore sprinter Julien Alfred and freshman heptathlete Leo Neugebauer – were also recognized as the Big 12 Women's Performer of the Year and the Big 12 Men's Outstanding Freshman of the Year, respectively.
Floréal led the Texas women to their third-straight Big 12 Indoor title, and second in as many seasons under his guidance, this past weekend. The Longhorns won nine conference titles (7 individual/2 relays) and scored a Big 12 Indoor-record 180.33 points in a triumphant victory. Eight of Floréal's student-athletes qualified for next weekend's NCAA Indoor Championships, a tally that is tied for the sixth-most in the country this season. Friday's announcement marks the second-straight year that Floréal was named the Big 12 Women's Indoor Coach of the Year.
Alfred, a native of Castries, St. Lucia, is the NCAA leader this season in the women's 60-meter dash (7.10 aa) and ranks No. 8 nationally in the 200-meter dash (22.99) as well. Her 60-meter mark is a UT school record and the seventh-fastest in NCAA history. It is also the No. 4 time in the world this year. Alfred is coming off a dominant showing at the Big 12 Indoor Championships, where she was one of three Texas women to win three conference titles (Kathryn Gillespie, Brooke Jaworski). Alfred tallied victories in the 60 and 200-meter dashes – becoming the first women to complete the sprint double at the conference meet since Marshevet Hooker in 2006 – and also ran the third leg of the Longhorns' gold-medal-winning 4x400-meter relay team. She is also one of 10 women nationally on The Bowerman's Pre-NCAA Championship Watch List.
Neugebauer, a native of Leinfeldene-Echterdingen, Germany, had a breakout performance in his first collegiate heptathlon at the Big 12 Indoor Championship, winning the conference title with a 5,848-point effort. Neugebauer was the event's top performer in the long jump, shot put and pole vault competitions and paced the field by 157 points. His title-winning effort ranks as the fifth-best heptathlon score in the NCAA this season and also made Neugebauer the fifth-best heptathlete in Texas history. Neugebauer is the first Longhorn to be named the Big 12 Most Outstanding Freshman of the Year indoors since Ryan Crouser in 2012.
Players Mentioned
