Track and Field in Birmingham for Southland Championships

ABILENE - Abilene Christian's abbreviated four-meet indoor track and field season reaches its conclusion this week with the running of the Southland Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships, which will once again take place at the Birmingham CrossPlex in Alabama.

The ACU women were exceptional here a year ago, finishing second with 112.5 points while the men placed fifth with 59 points. But with so many student-athletes either redshirting or gone to graduation, it will be a challenge to replicate last year's successes. 

The women go into this meet without the services of several 2016 all-conference honorees, including redshirts Alexandria Hackett, Diana Garcia Munoz and champion pole vaulter Kenzie Walker Mascorro, plus noted sprinters Jessica James and Petrene Plummer. Hackett scored 26 points as an individual, and Munoz was all-conference in the mile and distance medley relay. Plummer, meanwhile, scored in three events, including both all-conference relays and James won medals in the 400m run (third) and 4x400m relay (second).

Where the Wildcats are poised to score their most points are in the throws and distances. Michaela Hackett is the Southland's top-ranked runner in the mile (4:54.97), 3K ( 9:35.24) and 5K (16:19.36) and will run the latter two events along with senior Sierra Bennett (5K only) and sophomore Carnley Graham, who placed fifth in each of these championship races a year ago. Graham is the league's sixth-fastest runner in the 3K at 17:43.27 and its No. 3 competitor in the 5K (17:43.27).

In the throws, sophomore Lonnie Smith has a chance to point in both the shot put and weight throw based on current rankings. Smith owns the ninth-best shot put distance of 42-11 (13.08m) while freshman Annina Brandenburg ranks third at 46-10 (14.27m). Smith, however, owns the league's top mark in the weight throw at 60-2.25 (18.95), and sophomore Kayla Melgar ranks seventh at 52-8 (16.05m). 

Melgar and Smith were fourth and fifth, respectively, in last year's weight throw. Senior Taylor Yantis Woods also is back to compete in the pentathlon along with freshman Irene Akwitti, and leading the pole vault corps is sophomore Mackenzie West, who scored the eighth-place point here last February.

In the sprints, returning 400m champion Kimone Green stands to have a good shot at reaching the medal stand in the 200m and 400m dashes. She currently ranks fourth in the league in both events with times of 24.53 and 56.29.

ACU's men's team is without four scorer's from its last indoor championship meeting, including all-conference honorees Corneil Lionel (60m), Jelani Friday (WT) and Luke Woods (HEP). The Wildcats do, however, bring back conference medalist Rosen Daniel, who will be entered in the 400m dash, and four additional scorers in pole vaulter Jaden Dement (fourth), shot putter Kai Schmidt (seventh), weight thrower Morgan Knight (sixth), and heptathlete Wyatt French (fourth).

French scored 5,048 points in the Oklahoma heptathlon late January and is currently the Southland's top-ranked student-athlete in this event, while his teammate Riley ranks 10th (4,241). Knight and Schmidt give ACU another one-two punch in the shot put as they rank seventh and eighth, respectively, with distances this season of 54-1.25 (16.49m) and 53-3.5 (16.24m).

The Wildcats also return all of last year's fifth-place 4x400m relay, which was composed of Daniel, Lee-Andrew Bloomfield, Samuel Garcia and Sterlen Paul.

Newcomers who can make an impact in the Wildcats scoring column include freshman Ryan Linton in the 60 (6.92) and 200m (21.67) and rookie Avery Williams in the 400m (48.89).
 

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Abilene Christian Southland Track and Field Championship Entrants
Men's 60m Dash
Linton, Ryan: 6.92

Men's 200m Dash
Linton, Ryan: 21.67

Men's 400m Dash
Bloomfield, Lee-Andrew: 49.75 
Daniel, Rosen: 48.44 
Garcia, Samuel: 50.15 
Williams, Avery : 48.89

Men's 800m Run:
Paul, Sterlen: 1:56.48

Men's 1 Mile Run
Cummings, Drew

Men's 3,000m Run
Cleary, Ryan: 8:40.80
Rivers, Reid: 8:36.61

Men's 4 x 400m Relay
Williams, Bloomfield, Linton, Daniel, Garcia, Cleary, French, Rivers: 3:16.87

Men's Distance Medley Relay
Paul, Garcia, Cleary, Rivers, Cummings - NT

Men's High Jump
Ellis, Riley: 1.93m

Men's Pole Vault
Dement, Jaden: 4.75m
Haines, Justin: 4.45m
Mann, Kyle: 4.60m 

Men's Long Jump
French, Wyatt: 6.93m

Men's Shot Put
Hunter, Joshua: 14.55m  
Knight, Morgan: 16.24m 
Schmidt, Kai: 16.49m 
Simmons, Ryan: 14.30m 

Men's Weight Throw
Knight, Morgan: 17.00m 
Schmidt, Kai: 14.92m 
Simmons, Ryan: 15.13m  

Men's Heptathlon
Ellis, Riley: 4241 
French, Wyatt: 5048 
 

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Women's 200m Dash
Green, Kimone: 24.53
Kennedy, Jamie: 25.90
King, Jessica: 25.09 

Women's 400m Dash
Green, Kimone: 56.29
Hurt, Chartia: 1:00.08

Women's 3,000m  Run
Graham, Carnley: 9:59.16 
Hackett, Michaela: 9:35.24

Women's 5,000m  Run
Bennett, Sierra: 19:00.55
Graham, Carnley: 17:43.27
Hackett, Michaela: 16:19.36

Women's 4 x 400m  Relay
King, Hurt, Kennedy, Green, Yantis, Akwitti, West – 3:55.49 

Women's High Jump
Akwitti, Irene: 1.60m  

Women's Pole Vault
Morrow, Sophie: 3.40m  
Newman, Hannah: 3.25m  
West, Mackenzie: 3.30m  

Women's Shot Put
Brandenburg, Annina: 14.27m 
Melgar, Kayla: 12.49m 
Posey, Taylor: 12.58m  
Smith, Lonnie: 13.08m

Women's Weight Throw
Melgar, Kayla: 16.05m 
Posey, Taylor: 14.61m 
Smith, Lonnie: 18.95m

Women's Indoor Pentathlon
Akwitti, Irene: 3041  
Yantis, Taylor: 3077