AUBURN, Ala.—Auburn junior Joyce Kimeli received her second recognition in as many days, as she has been named the South Region Women's Track Athlete of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
Named to The Bowerman Watch List a day earlier by the USTFCCCA, Kimeli was the 2019 South Region Cross Country Runner of the Year and is the first Auburn woman to be named the region's track athlete of the year since Kerron Stewart in 2007.
A junior from Eldoret, Kenya, Kimeli is ranked second nationally in the 3000m at 8:56.02 and fourth nationally in the 5000m at 15:46.88. Both of those marks were turned in during winning efforts at the SEC Indoor Championships and Kimeli broke meet records in each event.
The USTFCCCA annually recognizes Regional Athletes and Coaches of the Year in nine regions across the country and is voted on by the association's membership coaches.
Kimeli will compete at the NCAA Championships, March 11-13, at the Randal Tyson Track Complex in Fayetteville. Ark.
