The 2024-25 college sports season is almost entirely in the books, and one of the final remaining events of the year was the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon over the weekend. After a strong season by both the Iowa men's and women's track and field squads, hopes were high that the Hawkeye runners and throwers would be able to end their season on a high note.
The action started on Wednesday as Iowa throwers Ryan Johnson and Mike Stein each earned first-team All-America honors with strong efforts. Johnson finished sixth in the hammer throw with an attempt of 71.91 meters. He's the first Iowa thrower to earn All-America status in the men's hammer throw since Andy Hamilton in 2007.
Johnson was one of two Iowa athletes to earn All-America status in the hammer throw. Sean Smith finished 11th in the event with a distance of 67.81 meters, which was good enough to earn him second-team All-America honors.
Mike Stein finished sixth in the javelin with a throw of 75.77 meters on his first attempt, which held up as his best throw and was good enough for a podium finish. His sixth-place finish this year follows a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Championships last year. He joins Bill Neumann (2002-03) and Matt Byers (2012-13) as the last two Iowa athletes to earn consecutive All-America finishes in the javelin.
“Mike (Stein) competed very tough and hard today,” Iowa Director of Track and Field Joey Woody said. "He put together a big throw in the qualifying round to make the finals and finished just outside the top three to place sixth overall. It’s another first-team All-American accolade for Mike.”
Thursday, as junior Lizzy Korczak placed 13th to earned second-team All-America honors in the javelin with a throw of 53.18 meters. Korczak's finish made her the first Iowa woman to ever earn All-America honors in the javelin, joining her bronze medal finish at the Big Ten Championship and setting the school record in event as impressive accomplishments this season.
“Lizzy (Korczak) didn’t have her best day and still finished as a second-team All-American for the first time in her career,” Woody said. “She had a terrific season overall.”
Senior Alli Bookin-Nosbisch also earned second-team All-America honors on Thursday, placing 15th in the final event of her Iowa career with a 2:03:78 finish in the 800 meter semifinal. She became Iowa's first women's All-American in the 800 meters since Kay Stormo earned first-team honors in 1982.
“Alli (Bookin-Nosbisch) had an awesome season,” Woody added. “She has had an amazing career here with multiple podium finishes in the Big Ten Championships. Alli holds the school record in both 800s and multiple relays. This was her first NCAA Championship and I am so happy that she finished her career as an All-American.”
On Friday, Iowa added an All-America finish in the men's 4x400 relay with a fourth-place finish. The foursome of Landon Fontenot, Zidane Brown, Josh Pugh and Terrick Johnson finished with the second-best time in program history at 3:01.61. They became the ninth-group of men's runners at Iowa to earn All-America status in the 4x400 relay and the first since 2022.
“Landon (Fontenot) set us up with a huge first leg to put us in the top three on the exchange with Zidane,” Woody added. “Zidane took the stick and did what he’s been doing all season and ran a tremendous second leg to move us into first at the handoff to Josh.”
“Josh kept his composure with the lead and ran very confidently with another great leg to keep us in the mix handing off to Terrick,” Woody said. “Terrick ran a great anchor with his fastest split of the season to help the relay finish fourth and earn first-team All-America honors.”
Finally, Iowa's women's 4x400 relay team added the final All-America finish of the tournament for the Hawkeyes. Alivia Williams, Damaris Mutunga, Olicia Lucas and Chioma Nwachukwu finished in sixth-place with a time of 3:27.42. They're the first group of women's runners at Iowa to earn an All-America finish in the 4x400 relay.
Overall, it was a very solid end to a strong campaign for the Iowa track and field program. They excelled in both the indoor and outdoor seasons, breaking school records on a regular basis and recording strong finishes at multiple events, capped off with good showings at the Big Ten Championships and the NCAA Championships.
