NEW ORLEANS (USTFCCCA) – Three Atlnatic Coast Conference record-setters were recognized as Indoor Track and Field Regional Athletes of the Year by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) on Thursday.
Men’s 60-meter hurdles national champion Trey Cunningham of Florida State and women’s pole vault national champion Rachel Baxter of Virginia Tech are among the 2021-22 season group of honorees, along with North Carolina shot put thrower Daniel McArthur.
Cunningham, who hails from Winfield, Alabama, is the USTFCCCA South Region Men’s Athlete of the Year. Cunningham turned in historic performance after historic performance in the 60-meter hurdles during the indoor season. He became the only athlete in NCAA history to clock four sub-7.42 marks, capped by his 7.38 winner at the NCAA DI Indoor Track & Field Championships, which was 0.03 seconds from the collegiate record set by 2019 The Bowerman winner Grant Holloway. That lowered his PR from 7.40, which he used on his way to becoming the first five-time champion in ACC Indoor Championships history.
Virginia Tech’s Baxter was named the Southeast Region Female Athlete of the Year. Baxter, who hails from Orange Canyon, California, was the NCAA and ACC champion in the pole vault while leading the nation with a mark of 4.62m (15-1¾). She ranks fifth on the all-time collegiate list. Baxter became the first vaulter, men’s or women’s, to win four consecutive indoor ACC pole vault titles. She was the only female vaulter to clear 15 feet this season.
McArthur, of Mooresville, North Carolina, is the Southeast Region Male Field Athlete of the Year. The UNC senior entered the NCAA DI Indoor Track & Field Championships as the national leader in the shot put with a ACC record mark of 21.51m (70-7). Earlier in the season, he scored 15 points at the ACC Indoor Championships thanks to a victory in the shot put, where he set his the conference mark, and a fourth-place effort in the weight throw at 21.18m (69-6).
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