COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – New Mexico freshman Habtom Samuel and Colorado State junior Mya Lesnar have been named the 2024 Mountain West Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track and Field Student-Athlete of the Year, as voted on by the league’s head coaches.
The honor is awarded to the best male and female student-athletes in the Conference following the conclusion of the indoor season.
Lesnar is the second Ram to earn the honor since it was established in 2008, joining Lexie Keller, who was named MW Women’s Student-Athlete of the Year in 2022.
At the 2024 MW Indoor Track & Field Championships, Lesnar helped Colorado State win the MW team title. The junior claimed the gold medal in the shot put with a throw of 19.10 meters, breaking the MW’s all-time record. Lesnar also won the MW weight throw title with a mark of 22.06 meters.
At the 2024 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championship in Boston, Lesnar secured Colorado State’s first women’s individual indoor national champion in program history. The junior entered the NCAA meet with the nation’s top mark in shot put. Lesnar’s won the national title on her fourth attempt with a mark of 18.53 meters.
On the men’s side, Habtom is the seventh Lobo to be named the MW Men’s Student-Athlete of the Year honors and first time since 2015.
At the 2024 MW Indoor Track & Field Championships, the freshman won both long-distance races after breaking the MW championship record in both the 5,000-meter and 3,000-meter races. Samuel crossed the finish line of the 5k in 13:45.57, while clocking a 3k time of 7:57.59.
Samuel finished fourth in the 5,000-meter race at the 2024 NCAA championship after clocking a time of 13:30.07, the fastest time by a freshman at the NCAA meet. He also placed seventh in the 3,000-meter race with a time of 7:46.86.
