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Annelus, Owens, Thomas & Smith Gilbert Earn Pac-12 Honors
May 15, 2019 | Track & Field, Features
Trojans claim half of the Pac-12's yearly awards
USC's Angie Annelus was named Women's Track Athlete of the Year, Ayden Owens Men's Freshman of the Year, Lanae-Tava Thomas Women's Freshman of the Year and Caryl Smith Gilbert Women's Head Coach of the Year by the Pac-12 Conference it was announced today (May 15).
Annelus, the 2019 Pac-12 Women's Track Athlete of the Year, equaled the most points of any track athlete at the Pac-12 Championships by amassing 20.5 points to help the Trojans win their second consecutive conference women's team title. She won the Pac-12 200m title with a season-best time of 22.71 (+0.1) to earn 10 points, was runner-up in the 100m dash with a PR of 11.17 (+0.5) to earn eight points and ran on USC's winning 4x100m relay which clocked 42.45 to earn another 2.5 points. She also ran on USC's 4x100m relay which set a Championships record of 42.44 in the prelims, which is also the world leader. The redshirt junior from Grandview, Mo., is the second consecutive Trojan to be named Women's Track Athlete of the Year, following Kendall Ellis, and is the program's fifth all-time recipient. It marks the first time a USC athlete has garnered the honor in successive seasons. Annelus is currently tied for seventh in the 200m and tied for eight in the 100m among NCAA runners.
Owens was named the 2019 Men's Freshman of the Year as he set the USC school record and the Puerto Rico national record in the decathlon with 8,130 points at the Bryan Clay Invitational in April. He is the NCAA leader in the event and his total ranks seventh all-time by a Pac-12 athlete. The Wexford, Pa., native is the sixth Trojan to receive the league's Freshman of the Year honor since the award's creation in 2000 and the first since Marquis Morris in 2015. Owens also placed third in the 110m hurdles at the Pac-12 Championships with a PR of 13.76 (+0.0).
Thomas became the third consecutive Trojan to earn the Women's Freshman of the Year Award, following TeeTee Terry (2018) and Anna Cockrell (2017) and the sixth overall. Thomas led all freshman at the Pac-12 Championships by scoring 16.5 points, finishing second in the 200m with a PR of 22.91 (+0.1) for eight points, third in the 100m dash with a time of 11.28 (+0.5) for six points and running on USC's winning 4x100m relay for 2.5 points. The Henrietta, N.Y., native ran the third leg on the relay which won with a time of 42.45 in the final after setting the Championships record with a time of 42.44 in the prelims. Â
Smith Gilbert, who led the women's team to its second consecutive and third-ever title and the men's team to a fifth-place finish, collects her fourth career Pac-12 Coach of the Year Award. She was the 2018 Women's Coach of the Year and swept both the men's and women's honors in 2015. The USC's women's team entered the final day of the Championships with zero points and ended up with 154 and a 17-point win over runner-up Oregon. USC's women won seven titles on the final day include a 1-2-3 sweep in the 100m hurdles, 100m dash and 200m final. The results from the Pac-12 Championships moved the USC women's team up to No. 2 in the USTFCCCA rankings, while the men moved up to No. 8.
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Annelus, the 2019 Pac-12 Women's Track Athlete of the Year, equaled the most points of any track athlete at the Pac-12 Championships by amassing 20.5 points to help the Trojans win their second consecutive conference women's team title. She won the Pac-12 200m title with a season-best time of 22.71 (+0.1) to earn 10 points, was runner-up in the 100m dash with a PR of 11.17 (+0.5) to earn eight points and ran on USC's winning 4x100m relay which clocked 42.45 to earn another 2.5 points. She also ran on USC's 4x100m relay which set a Championships record of 42.44 in the prelims, which is also the world leader. The redshirt junior from Grandview, Mo., is the second consecutive Trojan to be named Women's Track Athlete of the Year, following Kendall Ellis, and is the program's fifth all-time recipient. It marks the first time a USC athlete has garnered the honor in successive seasons. Annelus is currently tied for seventh in the 200m and tied for eight in the 100m among NCAA runners.
Owens was named the 2019 Men's Freshman of the Year as he set the USC school record and the Puerto Rico national record in the decathlon with 8,130 points at the Bryan Clay Invitational in April. He is the NCAA leader in the event and his total ranks seventh all-time by a Pac-12 athlete. The Wexford, Pa., native is the sixth Trojan to receive the league's Freshman of the Year honor since the award's creation in 2000 and the first since Marquis Morris in 2015. Owens also placed third in the 110m hurdles at the Pac-12 Championships with a PR of 13.76 (+0.0).
Thomas became the third consecutive Trojan to earn the Women's Freshman of the Year Award, following TeeTee Terry (2018) and Anna Cockrell (2017) and the sixth overall. Thomas led all freshman at the Pac-12 Championships by scoring 16.5 points, finishing second in the 200m with a PR of 22.91 (+0.1) for eight points, third in the 100m dash with a time of 11.28 (+0.5) for six points and running on USC's winning 4x100m relay for 2.5 points. The Henrietta, N.Y., native ran the third leg on the relay which won with a time of 42.45 in the final after setting the Championships record with a time of 42.44 in the prelims. Â
Smith Gilbert, who led the women's team to its second consecutive and third-ever title and the men's team to a fifth-place finish, collects her fourth career Pac-12 Coach of the Year Award. She was the 2018 Women's Coach of the Year and swept both the men's and women's honors in 2015. The USC's women's team entered the final day of the Championships with zero points and ended up with 154 and a 17-point win over runner-up Oregon. USC's women won seven titles on the final day include a 1-2-3 sweep in the 100m hurdles, 100m dash and 200m final. The results from the Pac-12 Championships moved the USC women's team up to No. 2 in the USTFCCCA rankings, while the men moved up to No. 8.
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