ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – After each putting forth standout performances at the Bryan Clay Invitational over the weekend, New Mexico’s Elise Thorner and Mckenna Watson were honored with Mountain West weekly award recognition announced by the conference office on Tuesday.
Thorner was named the Mountain West Track Athlete of the Week, and Watson claimed the Mountain West Freshman of the Week award.
Thorner stole the show last Thursday at the Bryan Clay Invitational, winning a steeple chase field that featured 200 runners across all heats. Thorner ran a time of 9:39.39 minutes, which was the fastest time by any athlete in the NCAA so far this season. “Elise ran the fastest time in the country in very difficult conditions, and ran the last 1,000 meters by herself,” said UNM head coach Joe Franklin. “She is making progress every week, where the goal is to get to the line healthy in June at the NCAA Championships.”
Watson climbed the Mountain West performance lists in both the 100-meters and 200-meters, while running personal bests in both races last week. Watson clocked a PR time of 23.95 seconds in the 200-meters, which moved her to No. 4 on the conference performance list. She also notched a career-best time of 11.81 seconds in the 100-meters, which slated her seventh on the conference performance list entering this week. “Mckenna continues to improve every week,” Franklin said. “She is a woman who has gone from running in high school last year to now becoming one of the best in the Mountain West.”
The weekly awards mark the first for both athletes, and it upped UNM’s tally to 18 total weekly honors including the 2022-23 indoor season.
New Mexico hosts the Don Kirby Tailwind Open on Thursday at the UNM Track & Field Complex, and will send three athletes to the Payton Jordan Invitational at Stanford this weekend.