Colorado Springs, Colorado - New Mexico Highlands University's
Ashley Barrett delivered a dominant performance at the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Indoor Track and Field Championships, helping power the Cowgirls to a fourth-place team finish with two gold medals.
The Cowgirls finished fourth in this year's championships with 78.5 points, the most since the 2018 team scored 99 points.
Barrett captured titles in both the 60m and 200m dashes, solidifying her status as one of the nation's top sprinters. Her 200-meter time of 23.96 seconds, adjusted for track size and altitude, not only bettered her own facility record set in Friday's preliminaries but also secured her spot at the upcoming NCAA Division II Indoor Championships in Indianapolis. The time also ranks second all-time in NMHU's history, behind only Jillisa Grant's 2013 national championship winning mark.
"Every coach in the building was shocked by that 200 performance," noted Head Coach
Bob DeVries. "Not that Ashley won but conventional wisdom is you just can't run that fast on that track…or so everyone thought."
Patreece Clarke defended her 60m hurdles title, clocking 8.42 seconds to move into the national Top 10 and punch her ticket to the NCAA meet.
"Patreece is really looking sharp once again, just in time for nationals," said DeVries.
The Cowgirls' strength in the sprints was evident throughout the meet.
Rujeko Munetsi recovered from a stumble out of the blocks to finish fifth in the 60-meter dash, while
Kacian Powell placed sixth and Clarke, racing just minutes after her hurdles victory, finished eighth. Munetsi and Powell also joined Barrett in the 200-meter final, placing fourth and fifth, respectively.
Freshman
Amoya Jameison delivered a surprise podium finish in the 400-meter dash, clocking 57.51 seconds to take third after entering the meet seeded eighth.
Rojrika Campbell added crucial points for the Cowgirls in the jumps, securing a silver medal in the triple jump with a clutch final attempt and a bronze medal in the high jump.
"Rojrika was the surprise of the meet, she was projected to score 3-4 points and gave us 14.5," added DeVries.
Munetsi, Jamieson, Campbell, and Powell capped off the grueling two-day competition with a gutsy fifth-place finish in the 4x400-meter relay, showcasing the Cowgirls' resilience.
DeVries heaped praise on both his athletes and assistant coaches for the Cowgirls outstanding finish.
"We've built a tradition and reputation for coming to the championship and over-- performing. It's 'what we do'--and our team believes in it. It's tough, our women work hard in less than quality facilities and my assistant coaches -- coach Russell and coach Dunbar -- are true teachers and do an amazing job preparing our athletes."
While Barrett and Clarke are solidly in the NCAA Championships, Munetsi and will need to wait and see if her performance gets her in. As of Saturday evening, the freshman from Zimbabwe, stood 20th on the national performance list.
Qualifiers for the 2025 NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships will be announced the afternoon of March 4th.
The 2025 NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships will take place March 13–15 at the Fall Creek Pavilion at Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, Indiana.
