NEW ORLEANS – National Athletes and Coaches of the Year for the 2022 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field season were announced by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
Member coaches voted on these honors following the conclusion of the 2022 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships this past weekend in Gulf Shores, Alabama, but considered performances during both the regular season and the NAIA postseason.
UBC’s Laurier Primeau was named the National Women’s Coach of the Year for the 2022 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field season. Primeau, in his seventh year at British Columbia, led the Thunderbirds to the team title at the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Gulf Shores, Alabama, scoring 138 points, 44 more than runner-up Indiana Tech.
UBC captured five event titles and earned the most women’s All-American awards with 31. Primeau was named Cascade Conference Coach of the Year as the Thunderbirds won the team title and 10 events. British Columbia earned five No. 1 ratings in the #EventSquad Rankings.
Fellow Thunderbird, Rowan Hamilton was named the National Men’s Field Athlete of the Year for the 2022 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field season. Hamilton won the hammer throw at the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a meet-record effort of 74.21m (243-5), breaking a mark that had stood since 1992. It was his second national title after winning in 2019 as a freshman.
Hamilton has the nine longest throws this year by a collegian in any division, led by his best of 75.98m (249-4). That mark is the farthest ever by an NAIA athlete and makes him the No. 12 performer all-time among all collegians.