Women's 2002 Season Review

The BYU women's track and field team continued its dominance by placing first in the Mountain West Conference Indoor and Outdoor Championships in 2002. On the national level they tied for 16th place at the NCAA Indoor Championships, and they also tied for 10th place at the NCAA Outdoors Championships. Seven athletes earned All-American honors for the indoor season and six earned All-American honors for the outdoor season.

MWC Indoor

In 2002, the Cougars won the MWC Indoor Championships and recorded five first-place finishes. Nikki Hughes placed first in the long jump with a distance of 19-08. Tara Northcutt took first in the 3,000m and the 5,000m. Lindsey Steele jumped 5-09.75 to take first in the high jump, and Anna-Lee Walcott placed first in the pentathlon, with 3,920 points. BYU also recorded four second-place finishes.

NCAA Indoor

The women's track and field team finished 16th at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Tara Northcutt led the team with a fourth-place finish in the 5,000m.

Michaela Mannova earned two All-American citations at the indoor meet, with an eighth-place finish in the 3,000m (9:19.09). Mannova and teammates Jaime Cottle, Holly Haguewood and Andrea Combs were given All-American honors for their finish in the distance medley relay.

In the high jump, Lindsey Steele (Metcalf) cleared a height of 5-09.25 to tie for sixth place and earn her first All-American citation. Lindsey Thomsen was also given All-American honors for her finish in the 5,000m.

MWC Outdoor

With six second-place finishes and six first-place finishes, BYU cruised to another MWC Outdoor Championship. Nikki Hughes led the team with a victory in the long jump and second place in the 100mH and the triple jump. Other first-place finishers were Jaime Cottle, Lindsay Johnson, Michaela Mannova, Lindsey Steele and Lindsey Thomsen.

Hughes was named an outstanding performer of the meet and Coach Poole was named MWC Outdoor Coach of the Year.

NCAA Outdoor

The women's track team improved on their 2001 finish by tieing for 10th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Michaela Mannova recorded BYU's only first-place finish, with a time of 9:45.94 in the 3,000m steeplechase. Lindsay Johnson placed third in the javelin throw with a distance of 174-05. Also scoring were Lindsey Steele, seventh in the high jump; Nikki Hughes, eighth in the long jump; Kassi Andersen, ninth in the 1,500m; and Lindsey Thomsen, sixteenth in the 10,000m.

Under the guidance of Coach Poole, the Cougar track team has recorded an almost perfect record on conference and regional levels and has consistently been national contenders. Since 1983, his teams have won all eight HCAC crowns, eight of nine WAC indoor and all nine WAC outdoor titles and all the MWC indoor and outdoor titles since the inception of the conference, for a total of 31 conference titles in 20 seasons. Poole's teams have finished in the top 15 seven straight years and have had 10 top-10 finishes.