Recapping the top outdoor track and field moments of March

The madness of March is over, and April brings the bulk of the Division I outdoor track and field regular season. Before we look ahead at what's to come, let's recap some of the top performances you may have missed from the outdoor season's opening month.

The collegiate records

Three outdoor collegiate records fell in March, starting with Northern Arizona's Nico Young. Less than a week after completing the distance double at the NCAA indoor championships, Young set the 10,000 meter record in 26:52.72. In the same race, freshman sensation Habtom Samuel of New Mexico ran 26:53.49 for the No. 2 all-time mark.

The next collegiate record to fall came when LSU's Michaela Rose ran the 600 meters in 1:25.75. It was Rose's second collegiate record of the calendar year. 

Texas's Leo Neugebauer set the decathlon shot put record at 17.26 meters at the Texas Relays as part of his No. 3 all-time decathlon performance, finishing with 8,708 points.

RECORDS: Every collegiate track and field record broken in 2024

Texas Relays

Neugebauer's record takes us right into Texas relays. The meet closed March and saw some great field performances. Arkansas-Pine Bluff's Caleb Snowden high jumped an NCAA-leading 2.26 meters, and freshmen standout Hana Moll pole vaulted an NCAA-leading 4.50 meters to lead a meet where seven of the nation's top-10 marks were set.

On the track, Houston sprinter Shaun Maswanganyi stole the show with his comeback finish in the 100 meters that took every inch for him to win.

LONESTAR: Recapping the 2024 Texas Relays

Florida Relays

At the same time Texas Relays was going on, so was Florida Relays, home to more impressive performances. Auburn's Favour Ashe returned to the track after missing the latter half of the indoor season with the first sub-10 second 100 meters of the year. Ashe ran a wind-legal 9.99 seconds at Florida Relays.

There were also noteworthy races on the women's side. South Carolina's JaMeesia Ford — who entered the meet with the nation-leading 400 meter time — ran an NCAA-leading 22.37 seconds in the 200 meters. Florida's Grace Stark defended her home track in a thrilling 100 hurdles battle with UCF's Rayniah Jones, with the two finishing in 12.70 and 12.78 seconds, respectively.

Stark's fellow Gators joined her with NCAA-leading marks as Malcolm Clemons and Sean Dixon-Bodie jumped 8.00 meters and 16.68 meters in the long jump and triple jump, respectively.

GAINESVILLE: Recapping the 2024 Florida Relays

Field events return

One of the main differences in the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons is the events, specifically the field events. March brought standout performances in some events that made their return in the spring.

Former NCAA champion Marc Minichello looked in mid-season form at the Hurricane Collegiate Invite, landing an 82.32 meter javelin toss — 10 feet more than any other collegian this year. In the women's hammer, Texas State's Elisabet Rut Runarsdottir became the first woman to surpass 70 meters this year, reaching 70.33 meters at the Bobcat Invitational.

Sprints, Sprints, Sprints

March saw stellar sprints from the very start of the outdoor season. A week after indoor championships, Iowa's Kalen Walker ran a 10.09 season opener in the 100 meters. On the women's side, LSU's Brianna Lyston ran a 10.87 second 100 meters for the fastest career opener in collegiate history, regardless of conditions. Closing out the sprints, Tennessee's Lady Vols ran the fastest 4x1 in school history at 42.98 seconds. That time from Jacious Sears, Dennisha Page, Joella Lloyd and Jada Seaman leads the NCAA so far this season.

AWARDS: The 2024 Bowerman Watch List for men's and women's NCAA track and field

Distance doesn't disappoint

March also saw a few more athletes climb the record books in distance or mid-distance events. Texas A&M's Sam Whitmarsh ran 1:44.46 at LSU's Battle on the Bayou, the No. 7 all-time performance in the 800 meters. Oregon's Maddy Elmore ran 15:15.79 across 5000 meters at the Stanford Invitational to become the No. 9 all-time performer.

Yet, the most mesmerizing performance of March in any distance event came from Iowa State's Ezekiel Rop. He out-kicked defending 1500 meter NCAA champion Nathan Green on the homestretch to finish in 3:40.09 at the Stanford Invitational.

What's next

April figures to continue the excitement of the 2024 outdoor season. Here's what you can look forward to.

Meets to watch

Here are some meets to watch as the season progresses:

• Cameron Burrell Alumni Invitational: April 6 | Host: Houston
• Tom Jones Memorial: April 12-13 | Host: Florida
• Bryan Clay Invitational: April 12- April 13 | Host: Azusa Pacific
• John McDonnell Invitational: April 18-19 | Host: Arkansas
• Mt. SAC Relays: April 17-20 | Host: Mt. San Antonio College 
• Drake Relays: April 24-27 | Host: Drake
• Penn Relays: April 25-27 | Host: Penn
• LSU Invitational: April 27 | Host: LSU
• ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12, SEC Conference Championships: May 8-12
• NCAA East/West preliminaries (first round): May 22-25 
  • East host: Kentucky
  • West host: Arkansas
• NCAA Championships: June 5-June 8 | Host: Oregon

OUTDOOR CHAMPS: Schedule, location, TV channels, history for the 2024 NCAA outdoor track and field championships

Records

In 2024, three collegiate records fell after the season's opening month. That's short of the 16 total performances where records fell in 2023, but ahead of the pace 2023 set. I'd expect records to fall as competition picks up throughout the year.