Valby Resets Collegiate Record on Route to National Championship; Bryant Puts Up Incredible Fight in Runner-Up Finish
Six Gators qualified for Saturday’s finals and the teams have a total of 14 entries going into the second day of action at NCAA Indoor Championships.
BOSTON, Mass. – With the first day of events at NCAA Indoor Championships in the books, the Gators have made noise in both the finals that concluded on Friday as well as in the qualifying rounds of the other events.
Six of seventeen events have concluded on the men’s side and the Gators stand with a total of seven points. Five of seventeen events have finalized for the women, Florida has been able to tally an outstanding 24 points and currently stand in first place. Outlined below are how the Gators secured said points and the athletes that advanced to tomorrows’ finals.
VALBY WINS SECOND STRAIGHT 5000m TITLE
On Friday night Parker Valby continued her streak, stretching back to the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Championships, of not losing any race she has participated in. Competing in the women’s 5000m, Valby dominated the field to the tune of a 14:52.79 which crowned her the NCAA Indoor Champion by a margin of almost 17 seconds. Her time also set four separate records. Valby snapped her own collegiate record which she set back at the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season opener, set the NCAA Indoor Championship meet record, claimed the TRACK at New Balance facility record and reset the University of Florida school record. Valby becomes the first Gator in program history to win the 5000m at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
BRYANT BATTLES IN LONG JUMP
Heading into her final jump, Claire Bryant stood in fourth place with a mark of 6.52m/21’4.75”. After fouling her fourth and fifth attempt and with one last jump remaining Bryant pulled off a leap of 6.71m/22’0.25” jumping her into first place, for the moment. Shortly after, a competitor from Iowa State surpassed Bryant. Despite this fact, Bryant notched an impressive performance and was able to score eight points for the women’s team and earns herself First Team All-American honors.
WOMEN’S DMR PLACES THIRD
The quartet of Elise Thorner, Laila Owens, Jess Edwards and Flomena Asekol ran an exceptional race resulting in a time of 10:54.40 and a third-place finish. Splits of 3:20.75, 52.65, 2:07.85 an 4:33.17 landed the Gators on the podium and earned another six points for the women’s team, ending the day one total at 24.
CLEMONS AND FOSTER SCORE SEVEN FOR THE MEN
Participating in the first field event of the day, Malcolm Clemons and Caleb Foster recorded third and eighth places finishes. Clemons tallied a mark of 8.11m/26’7.25” and Clemons recorded a best jump of 7.73m/25’4.5”. Both the Gators were slated as First Team All-Americans and opened the scoring for the men’s team.
SEMIFINALS HIGHLIGHTS
Wanya McCoy and Grace Stark qualified for two events each on Friday. McCoy secured spots in the Men’s 60m Final and Men’s 200m final thanks to times of 6.60 and 20.34, respectively. Stark reached the finals in the Women’s 60m and 60m with times of 7.18 and 7.83, respectively. Other Gators that advanced include Parvej Khan (Mile), Flomena Asekol (Mile), Robert Gregory (200m) and Jevaughn Powell (400m).
RESULTS
Friday, March 8 – Track
Events
Place. Athlete – Time | Notes
Mile Semifinal (M)
3. Parvej Khan – 3:57.13 | Auto-Qualified for Final
60m Semifinal (M)
4. Wanya McCoy – 6.60 | Qualified for Final
400m Semifinal (M)
6. Jevaughn Powell – 46.05 | Qualified for Final
800m Semifinal (M)
12. Sam Austin – 1:49.08 | Second Team All-American
200m Semifinal (M)
1. Wanya McCoy – 20.34 | Qualified for Final
4. Robert Gregory – 20.51 | Qualified for Final
Mile Semifinal (W)
6. Flomena Asekol – 4:33.67 | Qualified for Final
60m Semifinal (W)
6. Grace Stark – 7.18 | Qualified for Final, Season Best
60m H Semifinal (W)
1. Grace Stark – 7.83 | Auto-Qualified for Final, Season Best
5000m Final (W)
1. Parker Valby – 14:52.79 | NCAA Champion, CR, MR, FR, SR, PR | 10 Points
DMR Final (W)
3. Thorner, Owens, Edwards, Asekol – 10:54.40 | 6 Points
Friday, March 8 – Field
Events
Place. Athlete – Time | Notes
Long Jump Final (M)
3. Malcolm Clemons – 8.11m/26’7.25” | 6 Points
8. Caleb Foster – 7.73m/25’4.5” | 1 Point
Long Jump Finals (W)
2. Claire Bryant – 6.71m/22’0.25” | 8 Points
ATHLETE ENTRIES
Saturday, March 9 – Track
Events / Time (ET)
Athletes Entered
Mile Final (M) / 4:00 p.m.
Parvej Khan
60m Final (M) / 4:10 p.m.
Wanya McCoy
400m Final (M) / 4:20 p.m.
Jevaughn Powell
200m Final (M) / 4:50 p.m.
Wanya McCoy
Robert Gregory
4x400m Final (M) / 5:20 p.m.
Florida Relay Team
Mile Final (W) / 7:00 p.m.
Flomena Asekol
60m Final (W) / 7:10 p.m.
Grace Stark
60m H Final (W) / 7:40 p.m.
Grace Stark
3000m Final (W) / 8:00 p.m.
Flomena Asekol
Parker Valby
Saturday, March 9 – Field
Events / Time (ET)
Athletes Entered
Shot Put Final (M) / 2:45 p.m.
Kai Chang
Triple Jump Final (M) / 3:30 p.m.
Sean Dixon-Bodie
Shot Put Final (W) / 5:45 p.m.
Alida van Daalen
SCORING SUMMARY
The overall team score is accumulated from the placement of individual athletes in each event. Each of the top eight finishers will earn points for their team in the event. The point breakdown from said placement is shown below.
Placement
Points Awarded
1st
10
2nd
8
3rd
6
4th
5
5th
4
6th
3
7th
2
8th
1
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