GRACE TURNER
Courtesy of WKU Athletics
COLUMBIA, S.C. – WKU Track & Field recorded 13 top-five finishes, including a
5,000-meter win by freshman Rory O’Connor, at the Gamecock Invite hosted by South
Carolina on Saturday. It was the Hilltoppers’ second SEC hosted meet of the season
as the squad competed against nearly 30 teams and several unattached athletes.
In her first collegiate victory, O’Connor defeated 22 other runners by at least 15
seconds after posting an 18:08.02. To add to the victory, she has not competed in
two weeks after battling an injury.
“The highlight again for the distance group was Rory O’Connor,” said assistant coach
Brooks LeCompte on the day. “After Ole Miss, she suffered a knee injury which has
limited her cross training for the last two weeks. She was pain free two days ago so
we decided to give it a go. Thankfully, she finished unscathed with a massive
victory in her 5k collegiate debut. 18:08 is a great start and would put her
currently 10th in the conference rankings. To have three girls in the top 10 in our
conference is certainly not what anyone is expecting of us, but we wouldn’t want it
any other way.”
O’Connor was not the only distance runner to log a personal best on Saturday.
Sophomore Carley Maskos finished with a PR in the 1500 and 5000 as junior Savannah
Heckman finished fourth in the 1500. On the men’s side, junior Clint Sherman
continued his streak of PR’s with a personal best and fourth-place finish in the
800, just ahead of teammate Dedrick Troxell. The pair went 2-3, Troxell then
Sherman, in the 1500 with Troxell recording the PR in that event.
“We had some great performances today, and some that did not go our way,” added
LeCompte. “With how well the entire team ran last weekend, I wasn’t expecting them
to exceed that on such a short turnaround. However, we did have some great races and
PRs.”
Lady Topper sprinter Alexis Williams was also a highlight for the squad as she
finished with two top-10 finishes and personal bests in both of her races. She
finished eighth in the 100-meter with an 11.69. Williams posted a 23.58 in the
200-meter to finish fourth out of the 83 women that competed in the event. Both
marks put her second in conference as of Saturday afternoon.
“Alexis ran a lifetime best in the 200, so that was a really good PR for her,”
assistant coach Tosha Ansley said on the race. “At the moment that she ran it, her
time would be good for 22nd regionally. Of course, that’s going to update this
evening, but that was very exciting for me and for her. She is still working on her
start, so when we get that better, she should be able to run even faster and I’m
really excited for that.”
Staying in the sprinting group, junior Steven Simmons also logged a PR in the
200-meter while Marlowe Mosley finished fourth in the 400 at 47.62. That time puts
him in sixth in C-USA as of Saturday afternoon. The 4×100-meter relay team also
logged a season-best with a time of 41.11.
“The 4×1, it was a season best for them, but we still have some work to do on
exchanges and making sure people can get out on time,” Ansley added. “Then we need
to actually push through and work on passing the stick cleanly so that it does not
slow down during their zones. That was okay but my goal is always going to 40.39 for
them, somewhere around there. 41.11, yes, it is a season best, but I want more.”
The throws group added to the PRs and top-five finishes as junior Mary Claire Redden
recorded a solid personal best in hammer throw at 40.20 meters. All four male
throwers also logged a personal best over the course of the day. John Elam and Brett
Brannon earned theirs in hammer throw finishing sixth and seventh, respectively.
Those marks put them in sixth and ninth in the league.
Freshman Kaison Barton finished fifth in shot put with a PR of 16.30 meters. That is
good for fourth in C-USA men’s shot put as of Saturday afternoon. Joel Dittoe
finished off the day with a personal best in discus at 40.57 meters.
“The throwers had several PRs and are getting more comfortable with the changes that
come with throwing outdoors compared to throwing indoors,” said Director of Cross
Country/Track & Field Brent Chumbley.
Sophomore Grace Turner led the pole vault group after clearing a height of 3.61
meters. Nikki Ogorek and Allison Ferguson posted marks of 3.46 meters and 3.26
meters, respectively.
“The pole vaulters are closing in on what they need to do and the proper adjustments
they have to make based on the weather conditions, so we’re excited about that
progress,” Chumbley added on the group.
“All around we saw good things from the whole squad today. We’re looking forward to
the next two weeks of training and should be in good form across the board by the
time we compete in Louisville.”
Women’s Results
100m
8th – Alexis Williams – 11.69*
200m
4th – Alexis Williams – 23.58*
1500m
4th – Savannah Heckman – 4:44.47
14th – Lucy Rutherford – 5:01.09
35th – Carley Maskos – 5:24.05*
43rd – Heather Whitlow – 5:46.60
3000 Steeplechase
2nd – Lucy Rutherford – 12:05.88*
3rd – Maddy Hurt – 12:27.17
5000m
1st – Rory O’Connor – 18:08.02*
10th – Carley Maskos – 19:03.39*
Hammer Throw
14th – Mary Claire Redden – 40.20m*
High Jump
8th – Grace Turner – 1.55m
Javelin
14th – Allison Ferguson – 26.01m
17th – Audrey Griffin – 17.60m
Pole Vault
10th – Grace Turner – 3.61m
15th – Nikki Ogorek – 3.46m
18th – Allison Ferguson – 3.26m
Men’s Results
200m
24th – Steven Simmons – 22.06*
400m
4th – Marlowe Mosley – 47.62
14th – Jonathan Allen – 49.69
800m
4th – Clint Sherman – 1:55.99*
5th – Dedrick Troxell – 1:56.16
1500m
2nd – Dedrick Troxell – 3:53.43*
3rd – Clint Sherman – 3:55.12
14th – Will Perrone – 4:19.60
17th – Miles Huff – 4:25.67
3000 Steeplechase
5th – Emerson Wells – 10:08.91
5000m
9th – Will Perrone – 15:50.54
4×100-meter relay
3rd – 41.11
Hammer Throw
6th – John Elam – 53.92m*
7th – Brett Brannon – 51.41m*
8th – Joel Dittoe – 49.87m
13th – Kaison Barton – 43.07m
Shot Put
5th – Kaison Barton – 16.30m*
Discus
10th – John Elam – 42.93m
12th – Joel Dittoe – 40.57m*
14th – Kaison Barton – 38.42m
*designates DI Collegiate PR
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