LARAMIE – Taliah Morris dominated in the rain, snow and wind during her legendary career at Cheyenne East High School.
 
The 15-time state champion could have taken her elite talent to a variety of warmer climates but decided to stay home and compete in track & field at Wyoming.
 
Now the freshman phenom will represent the Cowgirls in four events at the Mountain West Outdoor Track & Field Championships this Thursday through Saturday in Clovis, Calif.
 
"I did talk to many other universities, but ultimately, I chose UW for (assistant coach) Quincy (Howe), as well as the team culture that we have at Wyoming," Morris said.
 
Morris put an exclamation point on her prep career by breaking state records in winning the long jump, 100- and 200-meter dash a year ago.
 
The momentum carried over into UW's outdoor season this winter as Morris set a new school record in the 200 with a time of 23.64 seconds, breaking the mark held by Jessica Fox (23.71) since 2004.
 
"It just showed what we do here at UW is all a process, and you have to be willing to trust the process," Morris said of her fast start. "Just kind of conforming to that and trusting in the coaches and the staff and everyone around me has really helped and also has helped boost my confidence seeing that there is progress happening."
 
At the Doug Max Invite on May 3 in Fort Collins, Morris set a personal best and tied for first in the 100. Her time of 11.67 seconds moved her to No. 3 in school history behind Jerayah Davis (11.18, 2019) and Kereston Thomas (11.50, 2014).
 
Morris also recorded top five all-time UW results in the outdoor 200 (23.63) and long jump (20-5 ¾).
 
Additionally, Morris joined classmate Megan Witkiewicz, junior Elayna Chafee and senior Gabby Drube to win the 4x100 relay (45.60). That mark ranks sixth in program history.
 
"It definitely was a surprise to make that immediate impact within the university and within the program," Morris said. "It was also kind of like a great confidence boost, just looking back and being able to see that my freshman year accomplishing what I have so far.
 
"I'm very grateful for this program."
 
The Cowgirls feature some other homegrown stars with MW women's basketball player of the year Allyson Fertig of Glendo competing in shot put and recording the No. 10 throw in program history (47-10 ¾).
 
Gabby Drube of Gillette, who was fourth in the 400 hurdles at the 2024 MW Championships, is seeking a conference championship this weekend.
 
Both Fertig and Drube are seniors, but the future of Cowgirl track is bright with Morris leading the way.
 
"Taliah is a great kid. She loves to compete," UW head coach Bryan Berryhill said on the One Wyoming Podcast. "She's in a scoring position in the 100, 200 and the long jump, which is very difficult to do in a very good Mountain West Conference, especially as a freshman. She has taken to the challenge and it's going to be exciting to see what she can do this week because although she is ranked in those three events I think she can better them."
 
Morris will compete in the long jump, 100, 200 and 4x100 relay at the MW Championships.
 
"I know what I need to do," Morris said. "Making sure that I'm mentally executing those things as well as physically. Really a big thing at this point is just going to be getting my mind right and making sure that I'm envisioning everything that I needed to do differently in every event."
 
If you are interested in learning more about NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) or would like to support our student-athletes, please visit 1wyo.org. 1WYO was created out of Wyoming's culture of neighbor helping neighbor. The mission is to promote and strengthen local charitable organizations and develop Wyoming student athletes. 
 
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