Full USTFCCCA Release

NEW ORLEANS, La. – The list of awards continue piling up for standout freshman Peyton Proffitt, who was named Great Lakes Region Women's Field Athlete of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on Tuesday afternoon.

Proffitt (Orient/Westfall) will be formally recognized at the NCAA Division III Championships banquet come Wednesday evening in New York, ahead of the national meet this weekend. She is set to compete in the pole vault on Friday at the Polisseni Track & Field Complex in Rochester.

A reigning All-American, Proffitt took third at the NCAA Indoor Championships during early March in Birmingham, Ala. The star newcomer will now enter her first national outdoor meet tied for the top seed/height at 4.06 meters (13-3.75).

The 2023 campaign has been an impressive one for Proffitt, posting 14 different victories and a sweep of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) titles. Her vault of 4.05 meters at the league's recent spring meet set a new OAC record.

Proffitt becomes the second Cardinals in five years from the Otterbein women's program to receive the USTFCCCA regional honor, joining former distance standout Claire Lamb (2018).

Other standouts from the OAC to land special regional awards this time around include Alex Phillip (John Carroll), Keegan Digby (Ohio Northern) and Kenadee Wayt (Mount Union).

Proffitt will be one of 22 individuals competing for the national crown on Friday, with first jump tentatively set for 6 p.m.