Ikeji, representing Great Britain, follows hammer throw crown in June in Austin, Texas, with first weight throw victory for Harvard since back-to-back championships in 1969-70; Davis extends Ole Miss streak to three in a row, becomes first female competitor since 2009-10 and sixth all-time in Division 1 with back-to-back titles

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Photos courtesy of Kirby Lee/Image of Sport

BOSTON, Mass. – Perhaps it was only fitting that when the NCAA Division 1 Indoor Championships showcased the men’s and women’s weight throw competitions Thursday for only the second time in meet history, that both winners became two-time title holders.

Ole Miss senior Jalani Davis achieved a dominant double in the women’s final and Harvard’s Kenny Ikeji completed a career championship sweep in the men’s competition on the opening night of the three-day event at the TRACK at New Balance, as the Division 1 indoor meet started on a Thursday for the first occasion since 2021 in Arkansas.

WOMEN'S START LISTS | MEN'S START LISTS | INTERVIEWS | DYESTAT DISCUSSIONS

NCAA officials decided to hold the weight throw championships Thursday in the arena, after coaches and athletes complained of implements hitting the low ceiling in the throwing cage Feb. 22 at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships.

Davis became the first back-to-back women’s champion since Louisville’s D’Ana McCarty in 2009-10 with a third-round performance of 81-4.50 (24.09m), as the top three competitors duplicated their order of finish from last year’s final in Albuquerque, N.M.

Davis, the No. 3 all-time NCAA indoor competitor at 82-3.75 (25.09m), also became the sixth female athlete in Division 1 indoor history to repeat as champion in the event. She helped Ole Miss join South Carolina (1996-98) and Florida (2002-05) as the only women’s programs to capture at least three straight indoor weight throw titles, with Shey Taiwo also prevailing in 2022 for the Rebels.

Minnesota’s Shelby Frank secured runner-up with a fourth-round effort of 74-5.50 (22.69m) and Ole Miss senior Jasmine Mitchell opened her series at 72-8 (22.15m), which held up for third place, as Virginia Commonwealth’s Gudrun Hallgrimsdottir of Iceland was the only other competitor to surpass the 22-meter mark to finish fourth at 72-5 (22.07m), the best finish by any athlete in program history at the Division 1 indoor final.

Mitchell remains the No. 4 athlete in Division 1 indoor history at 81-10 (24.94m) and Frank ranks No. 9 all-time at 79-2.50 (24.14m).

Ikeji, representing Great Britain, prevailed in the men’s championship with a second-round performance of 79-9.50 (24.32m), following his hammer throw crown in June with a 255-8 (77.92m) mark in the Division 1 outdoor final in Austin, Texas.

Ikeji, one of eight men’s athletes in collegiate indoor history to surpass the 80-foot barrier with his 80-0.25 (24.39m) effort Feb. 24 at the Ivy League Heptagonal Championships at Harvard, became the first male competitor to capture both Division 1 weight throw and hammer throw titles in his career since Norwegian athlete Thomas Mardal achieved the feat for Florida in 2021.

Ikeji earned the first weight throw crown for Harvard since Charles Ajootian and Ed Wosal won back-to-back championships for the Crimson in 1969-70.

Cal State Northridge junior Trey Knight came through in the clutch in the sixth round Thursday with a lifetime-best 79-2.50 (24.14m) to elevate to second place, the best finish by a Matadors’ athlete in any event at the NCAA indoor final since Reindell Cole won the long jump title in 2008.

Knight, a USC transfer, ascended from a ninth-place finish for the Trojans in the 2022 Division 1 indoor weight throw final at the CrossPlex in Birmingham, Ala.

Garret Bernt, a sophomore at Northern Arizona, took third with a personal-best 75-9.25 (23.09m) in the fifth round, contributing six impactful points for the Lumberjacks in their quest for the program’s first men’s indoor team title. Bernt surpassed British athlete Ruben Banks of Alabama, an Arkansas transfer, who placed fourth at 75-7.50 (23.05m).