Bearkat Men Win Fourth Consecutive Title, SFA Women Cruise to Championship
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – For the fourth straight year, the Sam Houston State men clawed their way to a first-place team finish at the 2019 Southland Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships. The Stephen F. Austin women's program dominated their way to a Southland Conference indoor championship of their own snapping a four-year drought.
The Bearkats were the lone program to put up triple digits in the men's championship topping out with 112 points on for their fourth conference championship in program history. The SHSU comeback was mounted following a third-place conclusion at the end of day one, where Sam Houston State found themselves trailing Southeastern Louisiana by 17 points. All told, SHSU claimed a trio of first-place finishes over the two-day stretch.
Southeastern Louisiana's men finished second in final standings with 83 points. The Lions were pulsed by D.J. Ruffin who was named the Men's Most Valuable Performer after accounting for 29.5 of SLU's points and a pair of conference championships in the long jump and high jump events. Ruffin's performance stands as the second-most points accrued by a single individual in Southland Conference men's history.
Abilene Christian men compiled 77 points on the way to a third-place finish, while Lamar concluded with 73 points to take hold of fourth place. Northwestern State (62) finished the event in fifth overall. The Demons were followed by Stephen F. Austin (56.5), Incarnate Word (45), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (41.5), Central Arkansas (39), McNeese (34), Houston Baptist (32), New Orleans (6) and Nicholls (0).
The Ladyjacks were a force to be reckoned with racking up six first-place finishes and 141 points on the way to their program's ninth Southland team title. Freshman pole vaulter Nastassja Campbell edged out a Southland Championship record after vaulting her way to 14-0.9 mark. Stephen F. Austin beat out their next closest opponent by 56 points.
Northwestern State claimed the runner-up position on the women's side with 85 points and two gold medals, both of which came on day two.
Incarnate Word concluded their best finish in program history taking third place with a program-best 81 points. McNeese came in next with 72 points, while Abilene Christian rounded out the top five with 65 points. Coming in sixth was Lamar (48), followed by Central Arkansas (43), Sam Houston State (43), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (38), Southeastern Louisiana (24), Houston Baptist (16), New Orleans (7) and Nicholls (0).
In addition to Campbell's record-breaking pole vault, there were three more conference championship marks that were broken over the two-day period.
Southeastern Louisiana's Ashley Davis bested her 2018 performance with a 54-7.5 heave in the women's shot put event. Davis' performance earned her a second consecutive gold medal in the indoor shot put.
Up next was Fabian McCall of Sam Houston State who topped out in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 7.75. McCall's outing bested the previous mark (7.81) set by Carl Johnson of UTSA in 2003.
SHSU had one more Southland Championship record set by Jo'vaughn Martin in the 200m dash. Martin recorded a 20.94 clip to overcome fellow Bearkat Chris Jefferson's mark of 21.07 in 2018.
The top three finishers in each event final are recognized as First, Second and Third Team All-Conference, respectively. Individual men's and women's awards for Coach of the Year, Outstanding Running Events Performer, Outstanding Field Events Performer, Freshman of the Year, Newcomer of the Year and Athlete of the Year will be nominated and voted upon by head coaches next week.
For athletes that achieved
qualifying marks this season, the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships will be hosted at the Birmingham CrossPlex March 8-9.
The 2019 Southland Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships are set for May 3-5 in Natchitoches, La. with Northwestern State serving as the host institution.
Men's Final Team Standings
| Pl. |
School |
Points |
| 1. |
Sam Houston State |
112 |
| 2. |
Southeastern Louisiana |
83 |
| 3. |
Abilene Christian |
77 |
| 4. |
Lamar |
73 |
| 5. |
Northwestern State |
62 |
| 6. |
Stephen F. Austin |
56.5 |
| 7. |
Incarnate Word |
45 |
| 8. |
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi |
41.5 |
| 9. |
Central Arkansas |
39 |
| 10. |
McNeese |
34 |
| 11. |
Houston Baptist |
32 |
| 12. |
New Orleans |
6 |
| 13. |
Nicholls |
0 |
Women's Final Team Standings
| Pl. |
School |
Points |
| 1. |
Stephen F. Austin |
141 |
| 2. |
Northwestern State |
85 |
| 3. |
Incarnate Word |
81 |
| 4. |
McNeese |
72 |
| 5. |
Abilene Christian |
65 |
| 6. |
Lamar |
48 |
| T7. |
Central Arkansas |
43 |
| T7. |
Sam Houston State |
43 |
| 9. |
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi |
38 |
| 10. |
Southeastern Louisiana |
24 |
| 11. |
Houston Baptist |
16 |
| 12. |
New Orleans |
7 |
| 13. |
Nicholls |
0 |
Day Two Champions
| Event |
School |
Name |
Cl. |
Distance/Time/Points |
| Men's Heptathlon |
Houston Baptist |
Denim Rogers |
Jr. |
5,528 |
| Women's Shot Put |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Ashley Davis |
Jr. |
54-7.5/16.65m |
| Men's Shot Put |
Abilene Christian |
Kai Schmidt |
Sr. |
58-11.5/17.97m |
| Women's Triple Jump |
Incarnate Word |
Sarea Alexander |
Sr. |
42-7.0/12.98m |
| Men's Triple Jump |
Lamar |
Tylen Guidry |
Jr. |
50-11.0/15.52m |
| Women's High Jump |
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi |
Sashane Hanson |
Sr. |
5-9.75/1.77m |
| Women's 60m Hurdles |
Incarnate Word |
Jerica Love |
Sr. |
8.41 |
| Men's 60m Hurdles |
Sam Houston State |
Fabian McCall |
Jr. |
7.75 |
| Women's 60m |
Lamar |
Thai Williams |
Sr. |
7.51 |
| Men's 60m |
Northwestern State |
Micah Larkins |
Sr. |
6.68 |
| Women's Mile |
Stephen F. Austin |
Kelsey Ramirez |
So. |
4:56.14 |
| Men's Mile |
Lamar |
Jordan Rowe |
So. |
4:08.17 |
| Women's 400m |
Stephen F. Austin |
Imani Nave |
Jr. |
54.37 |
| Men's 400m |
Lamar |
Webster Slaughter |
So. |
47.76 |
| Women's 800m |
Stephen F. Austin |
Madison Compass |
Sr. |
2:10.79 |
| Men's 800m |
Stephen F. Austin |
Drake Murphy |
Sr. |
1:49.97 |
| Women's 200m |
Northwestern State |
Natashia Jackson |
Jr. |
24.02 |
| Men's 200m |
Sam Houston State |
Jo'vaughn Martin |
Fr. |
20.94 |
| Women's 3,000m |
Stephen F. Austin |
Brittany Innis |
Sr. |
9:52.79 |
| Men's 3,000m |
Lamar |
Jordan Rowe |
So. |
8:17.37 |
| Women's 4x400m |
Northwestern State |
-- |
-- |
3:43.60 |
| Men's 4x400m |
Abilene Christian |
-- |
-- |
3:13.23 |