2019 Pacific West Conference Athletes of the Year

IRVINE, Calif. – After closing out his collegiate career with two more NCAA Division II National Championships and six All-American honors in 2019, Mobolade Ajomale earned his second consecutive Pacific West Conference Male Athlete of the Year honor in as many years. The award, voted on by the PacWest's directors of athletics, was announced by the conference's media relations office on Thursday.

"We just witnessed arguably the greatest four-year career of any track & field student-athlete ever to come through the Division II ranks," said director of track & field/cross country Kevin LaSure. "What Bolade has accomplished over the past four years is nothing short of astonishing and, in most cases, won't truly be appreciated until several years down the line. To have that much success, especially over the last three years when everyone he toed the line with was training all year just to beat him is extremely impressive. The events in which he accomplished these feats are events where one simple mistake could cost you the entire race and for him to be nearly flawless 10 times on the biggest stage is something that can't be overlooked. This is an achievement that I don't see being matched for a very long time."

Penning his final chapter after a junior season that saw him earn four national titles and hoist five All-American trophies, Ajomale continued his dominance with elite performances in the 60m, 200m, 400m, and 4x400m relay over the course of the indoor season. In his lone 400m race at the GVSU Big Meet on Feb. 8, he delivered a lifetime-best 46.78 that served as the fourth-fastest time in Division II. Ajomale fittingly saved his best for the BU Last Chance Meet on Feb. 24, dropping a 6.63 Nationals automatic qualifier in the 60m and one more in the 200m (20.80) that was second in DII history behind only his own 20.67 record. At that same meet, he also contributed to the Urban Knights' 4x400m relay whose 3:10.07 was sixth fastest in DII history, second by a DII team this season, and a program record by more than two seconds.

At Indoor Nationals, fresh off being named 2019 USTFCCCA West Region Indoor Track Athlete of the Year, Ajomale defended his national title in the 200m by 0.18 with a 20.88 in the final, claimed runner-up in the 60m by 0.03, and walked away with his 17th All-American honor after helping the 4x400m relay take third overall with what then became the fastest time in program history (3:10.02).

Ajomale's last outdoor campaign started with him posting his best times of the regular season in both the 100m (10.36) and 200m (20.81) at the Hornet Invite before going on join his teammates for their fastest 4x100m time of the year (40.65) at the Florida Relays. He later broke PacWest Championship meet records with the fastest 400m mark (46.91) of his career and the second-fastest 4x400m (3:10.78) in ART U history en route to being named PacWest Championship Men's Track Athlete of the Meet. A two-time PacWest Track Athlete of the Week (Mar. 20, Apr. 18) during the season, Ajomale claimed his fourth consecutive individual conference championship in the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m as well as his third career title in the 400m and second in the 4x400m. Adding five USTFCCCA All-Region honors to a collection of 40 in his career, he completed the regular season ranked top 16 in NCAA Division II in the 100m, 200m, 400m, 4x100m, and 4x400m.

Again being tabbed as the top track athlete to emerge from the West Region, Ajomale rode momentum into Outdoor Nationals where he led the men's 4x100m to sixth, finished runner-up in the 100m, and went out a champion after a successful title defense in the 200m. He became just the fourth male student-athlete to go back-to-back in 200m since the era officially began in 1976.

Ending his collegiate career as a 10-time individual champion and 20-time All-American, Ajomale had his name atop eight different event categories in the ART U record books. A bronze medalist at the 2016 Olympic Games, he finished as a two-time NCAA Division II National Track Athlete of the Year (Indoor 2017, Outdoor 2018), six-time DII West Region Track Athlete of the Year, and four-time PacWest Track Athlete of the Meet.

Ajomale is the first student-athlete in ART U Athletics history to be named PacWest Athlete of the Year twice after collecting the honor in 2018. Last year, he joined Vashti Thomas (2013) as the only other Urban Knight to receive such an award.