Youngstown State track and field seniors Jaliyah Elliott and Collin Harden have been named the 2019-20 Joesph F. Malmisur YSU Female and Male Athletes of the Year. Do to the continuing effects of the COVID-19 virus, this year's Annual Scholar-Athlete Awards Banquet has been canceled.
Over the last four seasons, Elliott has cemented herself as one of the most prolific sprinters in program history. The Beloit, Wisconsin native is both a recipient of the indoor and outdoor Alfreeda Goff Track and Field Female Athlete of the Year honors. She is the only female in school history and just the third in Horizon League history to be honored with both awards. In the 2018-19 indoor season, Elliott was named a Second Team All-American after placing 15th in the 60m dash at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
On the track, Elliott is a nine-time Horizon League champion and holds the school records in the 60m and 200m dashes. The senior also owns facility records at the WATTS in the 60m and 200m and at Farmers National Bank Field in the 100m and 200m. At this years' Horzion League Indoor Championships, Elliott won the 60m for the third consecutive year, becoming just the fourth sprinter in league history to be a three-time champion in the event. En route to capturing the 200m title for the second straight year, Elliott broke her own school record with a time of 23.66 seconds.
Last season, Harden punched the final ticket to the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a record breaking performance in the 400m hurdles at the NCAA East Preliminaries. The Girard, Ohio native broke his own school record in the event after clocking a time of 50.52 seconds. Harden went on to be named a Honorable Mention All-American after finishing 22nd at the championships.
Harden is five-time Horizon League champion which includes three titles in the 400m hurdles. Last spring, he became the Horizon League's first ever three-time winner in the event. In his final indoor championships, Harden won the 60m hurdles title for the first time in his career, finished as the runner-up in the 400m and took eighth in the 200m.
Despite losing the outdoor season, Elliott and Harden are both planning to return in 2021 to finish their senior seasons. Elliott will look to defend her Horizon League titles in the 100m and 200m dashes while Harden will look to capture his fourth crown in the 400m hurdles.
