2019 Sun Belt Indoor Track & Field Championships:
Championship Central | Results | Day 2 Heat Sheets | Photos
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The opening day of the 2019 Sun Belt Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships saw the Louisiana men and Texas State women take the lead following the first day of competition at the Birmingham CrossPlex.
On the men’s side, the Louisiana amassed 41.5 points with Texas State second with 37 points. On the women’s side, the Bobcats totaled 47 points with South Alabama in second with 37 points.
In the men's weight throw, Louisiana's Dominique Williams tossed a personal best, 65'6", to garner first-place honors. His sixth and final attempt shattered his previous best by over three feet. Texas State's Brandon Busby was second and Williams' teammate, Graham Sokol, took third.
Arkansas State's Carter Shell won his first Sun Belt Indoor Track & Field title, taking home top honors in the men's long jump. Shell's leap of 24'9.25" moved up to second on the 2019 Sun Belt performance list. Last season, Shell placed second in the long jump.
The men's pole vault was once again a hotly contested event. Appalachian State's Tristian Shaver was crowned the men's pole vault champion after winning a jump-off over A-State's Michael Carr. The pair both successfully cleared 16'10" on their first attempts before missing all three attempts at 17'1.75". In the jump-off, both missed at 17' before clearing 16'10" again on their first attempts. Shaver then cleared the bar at 17' after Carr's miss, earning the 2019 title.
ULM's Brianna Sam threw a season and personal best in the women's weight throw to earn the individual title. Sam's toss of 66'3" moved her into the top 35 of the NCAA. South Alabama's Michaela Preachuk, last year's weight throw champion, finished second. Ashley Muschiatti of Appalachian State was third.
USA's Emilie Berge was the top medalist in the women's long jump, winning the event with a season and personal best mark of 19'9.5". Berge was also the runner-up in the women's high jump, clearing the bar at 5'9.25", tying a personal best for Berge.
Alexus Henry of UTA, the reigning NCAA Outdoor High Jump Champion, claimed the indoor version of the high jump. She cleared a season-best 5'11.5".
The women's 3,000-meters saw the top five finishers all running personal bests in the event. Texas State's Leslie Romero was the top finisher, crossing the line in 9:40.57. App State's Hana Ratcliffe was second and last year's champion, Devina Schneider of Texas State, was third.
Ragin' Cajun freshman, Hannes Burger, won the men's 3,000-meters with a time of 8:24.25. UTA's Justin Domangue was the runner-up, his second runner-up finish in as many years. Texas State's Joseph Meade took third.
The Troy Trojans closed out the women's scoring for the night as the distance medley relay team of Gemma Finch, Madison Kennedy, Tiarra Bailey and Tanner Guest won the race with a time of 11:47.14. The Trojans bested the Bobcats by over two seconds with Georgia Southern placing third.
The men's DMR was won in dramatic fashion by UTA. The Mavericks won the title by just seventh-hundredths of a second (10:09.94 to 10:10.01) over Texas State. Louisiana was third.
The second and final day of competition gets underway Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. CT with the conclusion of the men’s heptathlon and the women’s pentathlon. Live coverage on ESPN+ is scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m. CT.
Women’s Team Standings (through five events scored)
1. Texas State - 47 pts
2. South Alabama - 37 pts
3. Appalachian State - 22 pts
3. UTA - 22 pts
5. Georgia State - 16 pts
6. Arkansas State - 15 pts
7. Troy - 13 pts
8. ULM - 10 pts
9. Georgia Southern - 6 pts
9. Louisiana - 6 pts
11. Coastal Carolina - 1 pts
Men’s Team Standings (through five events scored)
1. Louisiana - 41.5 pts
2. Texas State - 37 pts
3. Arkansas State - 28 pts
4. Appalachian State - 26 pts
5. South Alabama - 24.5 pts
6. UTA - 21 pts
7. ULM - 15 pts
8. Little Rock - 2 pts