The Bowerman: 2026 Women’s Watch List, Update #2

NEW ORLEANS – While indoor conference championships were exciting everywhere, the Big 12 Conference saw the most athletes ride their way into Update #2 of The Bowerman’s Women’s Watch List, which was announced Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

The Big 12 has four entries – twice as many as the Big Ten and SEC (two each) – on the Women’s Watch List in matching its highest number since the first list of 2021.

Two of the Big 12’s names include this Watch List’s only first-timers in Riley Chamberlain of BYU and Billah Jepkirui of Oklahoma State. That conference also saw the return of Texas Tech’s Temitope Adeshina to the Watch List for the first time since 2024 along with the third-straight appearance of freshman Jane Hedengren of BYU, which became the 16th program to have multiple athletes on the same Women’s Watch List.

The other six retuning athletes are JaMeesia Ford of South Carolina, Axelina Johansson of Nebraska, Pamela Kosgei of New Mexico, 2025 winner Doris Lemngole of Alabama, Hana Moll of Washington and Juliette Whittaker of Stanford.

The Bowerman 2026 will be awarded in December at the USTFCCCA Convention in Grapevine, Texas.

Adeshina, who hails from Offa Town, Nigeria, is undefeated in three meets – all at heights of 1.93m (6-4) or higher. Her top two clearances are higher than any other collegian has scaled this year with her best of 1.97m (6-5½) to win the Razorback Invitational in elevating her to No. =5 on the all-time indoor collegiate list. She won the Big 12 title at 1.96m (6-5¼), which was higher than she jumped to win last year’s NCAA DI Indoor crown. This is her second career Watch List appearance.

Chamberlain, who hails from Loomis, California, put her name at the top of an active all-time list – the mile – with a time of 4:20.61 in the David Hemery Valentine Invitational. She not only took more than two seconds off the CR, she led two others under the mark. She has set indoor PRs in all four event distances she’s raced this season, which includes becoming No. 6 all-time collegian indoors in the 5000 at 14:58.16. She blitzed a 28.67 final 200 to win a tactical Big 12 title in the 800. Her indoor season also includes another impressive performance, leading off BYU’s distance medley relay team in December which clocked 10:41.85 – faster than the CR of 10:42.05 but not eligible for record consideration as the track was oversized.

Ford, who hails from Fayetteville, North Carolina, was runner-up in the 200 at the SEC Championships after a seasonal best 22.58 in the heats, but may have had her most impressive performance in the 4×400 relay. She clocked the race’s fastest split (50.47) on the third leg in bringing the Gamecocks into contention as the nation’s top three fastest teams finished within a tenth of a second of each other. Earlier this year she added two entries to the collegiate all-time 300-meter list – 36.12 and 36.25, rating Nos. =7 and 10 among performances (she now has four of the top-10 in her career, topped by a 35.83 from two seasons ago that remains No. 2 all-time). Ford is the active career leader in women’s Watch List appearances with 15.

Hedengren, who hails from Provo, Utah, is the only women to rate top-3 all-time collegiately in the mile, 3000 and 5000. She opened the year with a CR 14:44.79 in the 5k, then added an 8:34.98 in the 3k at the Millrose Games to be No. 2 all-time before a 4:22.22 mile at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational put her No. 3. In both of the latter performances she was faster than the previous CR. At the Big 12 Championships she won the 3000 and was runner-up in the mile with a performance that made her one of two women with multiple top-10 all-time mile performances. Her indoor season also includes another impressive performance, anchoring BYU’s distance medley relay team in December to a time of 10:41.85 – faster than the CR of 10:42.05 but not eligible for record consideration as the track was oversized. This is Hedengren’s third appearance on the Watch List.

Jepkirui, who hails from Kapsabet, Kenya, is undefeated against collegians at all distances in finals this year. She won a mile/1000 double at the Big 12 Championships that included a 4:23.40 victory that was just off her 4:22.92 best on an oversized track that has her No. 4 collegian all-time, all-conditions. A week earlier at the Arkansas Qualifier she anchored Oklahoma State’s DMR team with a come-from-behind 4:23.87 split as the Cowgirls clocked 10:43.10, No. 2 all-time collegiately on a record-legal track. Her best in the 3000 of 8:45.22 rates her No. 15 collegian all-time.

Johansson, who hails from Hok, Sweden, continues undefeated – and dominating – in the shot put this season. She won the Big Ten title by 1.50m (more than three feet) at 19.47m (63-10½), breaking her own meet record with the No. 8 collegiate indoor performance all-time. That’s the closest any collegian has been to her in a competition this year, and she owns five of the other marks ahead of that on the all-time list, topped by her CR 19.72m (64-8½) in December. She’s the defending NCAA DI Indoor champ, and this is her seventh career Watch List appearance.

Kosgei, who hails from Elgeyo-Marakwet County, Kenya, won the 5000/3000 double at the Mountain West Championships with high-altitude all-time collegiate bests in both events – 15:32.15 and 8:58.58, respectively. Those times destroyed the previous bests of 15:53.72 and 9:08.28 set by Kosgei herself in the same meet last year. Her bests at low altitude in those events this season are 15:05.41 and 8:44.91. Kosgei is a returning finalist for The Bowerman, and this is her seventh career Watch List appearance.

Lemngole, who hails from West Pokot County, Kenya, followed up her sensational 3000 victory at the Millrose Games in a CR 8:31.39 relatively quieter, winning the 5000 in a PR 14:51.21, merely the No. 2 performance in collegiate history. She won the SEC 3k in 8:45.90 and has just one loss this year – yet still clocking a PR of 4:32.69 in the mile. Recall that outdoors she dominates the collegiate steeple all-time list, topped by a CR 8:58.15 last year en route to being awarded The Bowerman, an award no man or woman has won twice. This is her 11th career Watch List appearance.

Moll, who hails from Olympia, Washington, is the No. 2 collegiate pole vaulter all-time indoors at 4.88m (16-0¼) after winning the Washington Invitational in January. She’s undefeated this year, winning the Big Ten title at 4.60m (15-1) and Don Kirby Elite Invitational at 4.70m (15-5). She was the 2024 NCAA Indoor champion, and this is her seventh career Watch List appearance.

Whittaker, who hails from Laurel, Maryland, has shown PR or near-PR form in several events this winter, but perhaps her most impressive performance this year didn’t even approach her best in the 800. She won the ACC 800 title in 2:01.84 to turn back both Gladys Chepngetich (No. 2 all-time at 1:58.81) and reigning NCAA DI Indoor champ Makayla. Her fastest 800 this year came on an oversized track at 1:59.76, the No. 9 collegiate performance all-time, all-conditions. She rates higher in the 600 (1:25.64, No. 4 collegian all-time) and 1000 (2:37.54, No. 2 collegian all-time, all-conditions). She was the 2024 NCAA Indoor champion, and this is her seventh career Watch List appearance.

Eight athletes received votes from the Advisory Board but lacked enough to make this Watch List: Silan Ayyildiz of Oregon, Sophia Beckmon of Illinois, Gladys Chepngetich of Clemson, Adaejah Hodge of Georgia, Sanu Jallow-Lockhart of Arkansas, Alyssa Jones of Stanford, Hayley Kitching of Penn State and Wilma Nielsen of Oregon.

The next women’s Watch List is scheduled for March 25.