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ORLANDO, Fla. - History was made in Orlando, Fla., Sunday night for the University of Cincinnati women's track and field program as the Bearcats amassed 111 points to win a hotly contested team race to capture the first team title in its history by securing the 2016 American Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships meet. Javette Lee (100m hurdles) and Annette Echikunwoke (hammer) each won individual titles to bolster a team that collected 71 of its overall point total on the final day of competition to lift the trophy.
Heading into the final two events of the night - the 5,000m run and the 4x400m relay - the Bearcats held a slim lead of four points (93-89) over East Carolina while three other teams were within eight points of UC. Following the distance race and the inclusion of the recently completed high jump, UC held a mathematical advantage in the team race, leading, 105-94 over UConn, meaning its 11-point lead could not be erased in the final relay. With the team crown assured, the relay team still went to work and turned in the fifth-fastest time in school history to add six more points and send the Bearcat women into a well-deserved celebration.
The final team standings in the women's competition saw UC on top with 111 points while host UCF took runner-up accolades with 98 points to edge out UConn (97) for second. The remainder of the Top 6 consisted of a very tight grouping of teams, including ECU (93), Tulane (90) and SMU (89). On the men's side, the Bearcats tallied 72.0 points to finish seventh overall while Houston ran away with the title, scoring a whopping 203 points to easily distance itself from runner-up UConn (148). Memphis (97), USF (92.5) and ECU (91) rounded out the Top 5.
Following the team title and presentation of awards, the women's coaching staff was selected in a vote by their peers as the 2016 Women's Staff of the Year. Head Coach Susan Seaton's staff that was honored includes assistants Chris Wineberg, Sam Kranz, Sam Burroughs, Nadine Faustin-Parker and Lara Crofford.
// WOMEN'S RESULTS
- While it was a total team effort to claim the team title, several individual performance sparked the team to victory, including the all-star performance of Lee, who won the 100m hurdles in a school-record time of 13.25, took third in the 400m hurdles in 59.46 and helped both relays to third-place finishes in their respective events. Lee took over the top spot on UC's short hurdle race chart as her time bettered the 13.30 run last year by teammate Je'Rica Sanders, who finished third this year in the same race. Lee, after running under 60 seconds for the first time in her career in the preliminary round one day before, came back and accomplished the feat once again, this time to place third overall and earn her second all-conference selection of the meet.
- Lee was not the only solid sprinter on the track for the Bearcats as senior Kenya Woodall also had her named called numerous times as she not only ran the anchor legs of both relays, but also finished third overall in both the 200m and 400m events. First up, Woodall clocked in a time of 52.57 to place third in the open quarter before coming back and lowering her own school record to 23.09 in the 200m dash to also take third. Her time in the half-lap sprint also qualified her to the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in her second event after having already qualified in the 400m dash earlier this year.
- Lee and Woodall were two of three women that race on both relays, joining Bryana Robinson in that distinction. Robinson individually placed fourth overall in the 400m dash in 53.67 to collect five team points. In the relays, the trio were joined by Haisha Bisiolu to run 44.39 to place third in the 4x100m relay and break the school record in the process. The three women also teamed with Deanna Gesicki to place third in the 4x400m relay in 3:38.56, the fifth-best time in program history.
- The field events also produced points for the women, including three in the high jump. While not the results they had hoped, the trio of Erika Hurd, Loretta Blaut and Ashleigh Pickens all cleared 1.70m (5-07.00) to place in the Top 8 with misses at previous heights determining placement. Hurd and Blaut each tied for third place to earn all-conference honors while Pickens was eighth overall to add one point to the 11 split by her two teammates in third.
- Leah Heckaman closed out a strong showing in the throws as she placed fifth overall in the shot put, tossing the ball out to 15.35m (50-04.50), just 3cm under her personal best. With her finish, she added four more points to the team total after scoring one point in the discus two days prior.
- Rebecka Abrahamsson also scored for the team in her second event of the meet, this time placing fifth in the triple jump to collect another four points. Abrahamsson posted a best mark of 12.81m (42-00.50) for finish at the meet.
// MEN'S RESULTS
- The men's side also produced several highlight reel worthy results with Jimmy Brooks leading the charge on the track. The junior transfer, one day removed from qualifying seventh in the event, blasted out of the blocks in the final of the 400m dash to ran a remarkable race, out-leaning his fellow competitors at the line to win the title in 46.04 and post the second-fastest time in school history. At the tape, the digital timing system was needed to sort out the winner with Brooks running 46.033 while runner Chinedu Amonu (UConn) was clocked at 46.039. Brooks then came back later in the meet to run the second leg of the runner-up 4x400m relay.
- In the mile relay, the Bearcats' quartette of Halen Witcher (48.3), Brooks (45.7), Nathan Smith (47.2) and Nathan Alexander (46.8) combined to run 3:08.13 and take second overall with a school-record time. After Witcher led off and had the team in fourth place, Brooks took off and brought the team into the lead at the second exchange where Smith held the team in its position. Alexander battled around the track before being edged by Houston at the finish after the Cougars ran 3:07.47. The time for UC was a seven-second improvement over the previous best time turned in this season.
- Witcher also competed in the open 400m dash and was eighth overall in 48.73. That finish earned one team point for the Bearcats.
- The hurdles also saw a pair of Bearcats score team points as Jaashir Morris and Kelvin Williams placed sixth in the 400m hurdles and seventh in the 110m high hurdles, respectively. Morris ran a PR 52.84 and was able to get under the 53-second barrier for the first time while Williams raced to a time of 14.51.
- The final team point came in the triple jump where Sergio Acera Villanueva took eighth overall with his best of 14.51m (47-07.25).
// TEAM NOTES
- The title won by the women is the first in the history of the program, including cross country, indoor track and field and outdoor track and field.
- The women's title is the seventh outdoor crown won by the overall program and the first since the men won Conference-USA in 2004. Overall, the men won the Great Midwest three times (1992, 1993 and 1994) and C-USA three times (1996, 2001 and 2004).
- Overall, the women's title gives the full program its 15 all-time conference title after the men won four cross country titles, four indoor track and field crowns and six outdoor titles prior to the women adding its first to the collection.
- Eleven different women and eight men all placed among the Top 3 in at least one event to earn all-conference honors. The women were led by Lee and Woodall, who both earned four Top 3 finishes, while Brooks was the lone repeat performer for the men as he earned the accolade in a pair of events.
Next up for those that qualify will be the 2016 NCAA East Preliminary Rounds that will be conducted May 26-28 in Jacksonville, Fla. The NCAA will release its list of qualifiers on Thursday, May 17, which will contain the Top 48 individuals and Top 24 relays that will compete to be among the Top 12 in Florida to advance to Eugene, Ore., June 8-11, for the NCAA Championship Final.
Women's Results
The American Outdoor Championships (5/15/16) - Day 4
100m Hurdles - FINAL
1. Javette Lee - 13.25 - CHAMPION - PR & UC Record - All-Conference - 10 team points
3. Je'Rica Sanders - 13.58 - All-Conference - 6 team points
- Aliya Barnes - did not finish
200m Dash - FINAL
3. Kenya Woodall - 23.09 - PR & UC Record - All-Conference - U.S. Olympic Trials Qualifier - 6 team points
400m Dash - FINAL
3. Kenya Woodall - 52.57 - All-Conference - 6 team points
4. Bryana Robinson - 53.67 - 5 team points
400m Hurdles - FINAL
3. Javette Lee - 59.46 - All-Conference - 6 team points
1,500m Run - FINAL
12. Meg Westerheide - 5:16.50
5,000m RUN - FINAL
34. Samantha Simms - 18:54.21
- Hannah Christ - did not finish
4x100m Relay - FINAL
3. Cincinnati - 44.39 - UC Record - All-Conference - 6 team points
Lee, Bisiolu, B. Robinson, Woodall
4x400m Relay - FINAL
3. Cincinnati - 3:38.56 - UC #5 - All-Conference - 6 team points
B. Robinson (56.7), Lee (53.3), Gesicki (55.9), Woodall (52.4)
Triple Jump - FINAL
5. Rebecka Abrahamsson - 12.81m (42-00.50) - 4 team points
13. Kellsa Mbah - 11.59m (38-00.25)
High Jump - FINAL
t3. Erika Hurd - 1.70m (5-07.00) - All-Conference - 5.5 team points
t3. Loretta Blaut - 1.70m (5-07.00) - All-Conference - 5.5 team points
8. Ashleigh Pickens - 1.70m (5-07.00) - 1 team point
11. Naomi Urbano - 1.66m (5-05.25)
- Maggie Loeffler - no height
Shot Put - FINAL
5. Leah Heckaman - 15.35m (50-04.50) - 4 team points
14. Annette Echikunwoke - 13.71m (44-11.75)
FINAL Team Scores
1. Cincinnati - 111
2. UCF - 98
3. UConn - 97
4. East Carolina - 93
5. Tulane - 90
6. SMU - 89
7. Memphis - 86
8. Houston - 66
9. Temple - 37
10. USF - 29
11. Tulsa - 22
Men's Results
The American Outdoor Championships (5/15/16) - Day 4
110m Hurdles - FINAL
7. Kelvin Williams - 14.51 - 2 team points
400m Dash - FINAL
1. Jimmy Brooks - 46.04 - CHAMPION - PR & UC #2 - All-Conference - 10 team points
8. Halen Witcher - 48.73 - 1 team point
400m Hurdles - FINAL
6. Jaashir Morris - 52.84 - PR - 3 team points
5,000m Run - FINAL
10. Kevin Fink - 14:53.57
15. Greg Sanders - 15:07.16
16. Ian Silver - 15:07.18
22. Seamus Collins - 15:15.52
23. Jacob Franklin - 15:16.83
29. Dan Huben - 15:46.30
- Toby Loveridge - did not finish
4x100m Relay - FINAL
- Cincinnati - false start
Fuller, Brooks, Thompson, Jones
4x400m Relay - FINAL
2. Cincinnati - 3:08.13 - UC Record - All-Conference - 8 team points
Witcher (48.3), Brooks (45.7), Smith (47.2), Alexander (46.8)
Triple Jump - FINAL
8. Sergio Acera Villanueva - 14.51m (47-07.25)
10. Christopher Greene - 13.81m (45-03.75)
Final Team Scores
1. Houston - 203.0
2. UConn - 148.0
3. Memphis - 97.0
4. USF - 92.5
5. East Carolina - 91.0
6. Tulsa - 85.0
7. Cincinnati - 72.0
8. Tulane - 24.5
SUPERLATIVES
2016 American Athletic Conference Champions
Women:
Echikunwoke, Annette - Hammer
Lee, Javette - 100m Hurdles
Men:
Brooks, Jimmy - 400m Dash
Valles, Adrian - Pole Vault (back-to-back)
Coaching Staff:
2016 Women's Coaching Staff of the Year
2016 All-American Athletic Conference (Top 3)
Women (11):
Bisiolu, Haisha - 4x100m
Blaut, Loretta - High Jump
Echikunwoke, Annette - Hammer
Gesicki, Deanna - 4x400m
Hurd, Erika - High Jump
Lee, Javette - 100m Hurdles, 400m Hurdles, 4x100m, 4x400m
Mbah, Kellsa - Long Jump
McBride, Alyssa - Pole Vault
Robinson, Bryana - 4x100m, 4x400m
Sanders, Je'Rica - 100m Hurdles
Woodall, Kenya - 200m, 400m, 4x100m, 4x400m
Men (9):
Alexander, Nathan - 4x400m
Bloom, Alex - Decathlon
Brooks, Jimmy - 400m Dash, 4x400m
Hardiman, Jordan - High Jump
Huben, Dan - 3,000m Steeplechase
Province, Josh - Hammer
Smith, Nathan - 4x400m
Valles, Adrian - Pole Vault
Witcher, Halen - 4x400m