The Ragin’ Cajuns indoor track and field team wrapped up the indoor Sun Belt Conference meet with a third-place finish in the men’s event and an 11^th place finish for the women’s events.

The men scored 92 points and the women scored 14.5 overall. WKU’s women’s indoor track and field team captured its fifth straight Sun Belt Conference title, and the Hilltoppers men’s squad claimed the men’s championship for the second time in three years at the Murphy Center on Sunday afternoon.

The men dominated the high jump, getting three of the top four finishers. Leading the way was Antwain Keyes who had a jump of 1.99 meters for first place. Chris Roy also pulled in a first-place finish, hitting height of 17-07.25 feet in the pole vault.

Other first-place winners for UL in the men’s 55-meter hurdles event was Louis Stevens (7.40) and freshman O’Daylon Thibeaux won the men’s triple jump (15.21, 49’11").

For his efforts, head coach Charlie Mahfouz was named women’s coach of the year.

The Lady Hilltoppers finished with 179.33 total points which is the highest team total in SBC Championship history the previous high was 149 in 2008 by WKU. The Middle Tennessee women came in second with 110 points, and North Texas took third place with104.33. The Hilltoppers knocked off defending champions, Middle Tennessee, in the men’s competition, posting a total of 136 points, while North Texas took second with 98 points and Louisiana finished third with 92.

Middle Tennessee’s Festus Chemaoi and Cherice Robertson were the top meet scorers of the championship. North Texas’ Keyth Talley was named most outstanding men’s track athlete while WKU’s Janet Jesang earned the women’s most outstanding track athlete. 

The final day of competition got underway with a Hilltopper victory as Brian Soverns got his second win of the weekend with a first-place finish in the weight throw. His toss of 18.28 meters earned him the top spot, the senior Hilltopper has now won back-to-back championships in the weight throw and shotput. UL’s sophomore Garrett Harkless placed second and Arkansas State’s senior Bryant Hankton finished third.

Middle Tennessee’s Brittany Cox set a Sun Belt Championship record in the women’s weight throw with a throw of 18.87 meters (61’11"), helping Cox earn the most outstanding field athlete of the meet, voted by the conference coaches. WKU took second and third as Monteka Flowers and Adesola Adeduro each threw over 60 feet.

Jordan Wehr of North Texas who was the leader after the four events of Day 1 in the Heptathlon held on to beat out ULM’s Ruslan Hemed with a score of 5075 points.

Louisiana-Monroe’s Jerrica Thomas won the women’s triple jump (12.31, 40’4.75) and Louisiana’s freshman O’Daylon Thibeaux won the men’s triple jump (15.21, 49’11").

There were repeat winners from the 2009 championship in both the men’s and women’s mile. Festus Chemoi won the men’s with a time of 4:10.18 and Janet Jesang repeated with a time of 4:51.32. Chemoi set a new SBC Championship record. The Lady Toppers also took second and third in the mile (Marion Kandie, Vasity Chemweno) helping build the team lead.

 WKU outran the rest of the conference in the 400-meters finals taking first and second in men’s and first in women’s. Ennis Jones had a first place time of 48.17, Terrill McCombs (48.7) and Kellie Morrison finished first in the women’s with a time of 55.32. These performances helped propel WKU to dual titles.

North Texas dominated the 55-meter dash and 55-meter hurdles taking first in three of the four events. In the most exciting race of the day the Mean Green’s Keyth Talley edged ULM’s Luther Ambrose in a photo finish. Talley finished with a time of 6.235 while Ambrose ran a 6.239. Minutes later the women’s 55-meter hurdles had a similar finish when North Texas’ Alysha Adams (7.763) beat Middle’s Cherice Robertson (7.768) in another photo finish. North Texas swept the top three spots in the 55-meter dash with Missy Barnes placing first (6.96). The men’s 55-meter hurdles event was won by Louisiana Louis Stevens (7.40).

The women’s 5000-meters was won by junior Marion Kandie of WKU (17:39.48) her teammate Eimear O’Brien finished second (7:46.56). Micah Tirop of South Alabama (14:26.83) prevailed in the men’s 5000-meters.

Florida Atlantic’s senior Patricia Grumbs won the women’s 800 meter run with a time of 2:11.59, while Middle Tennessee’s Chemaoi placed first in the men’s 800-meters (1:52.08).

The final individual events of the night were the men’s and women’s 200-meter dash which was swept by North Texas. Alysha Adams took first in the women’s race (24.01), and Talley continued to impress winning the men’s 200 and setting a new SBC Championship record (21.02) for the second day in a row.

The nightcap of the 2010 Sun Belt Conference Indoor Track & Field Championship was the 4×440 relays which were also swept by Mean Green of North Texas. The men finished with a time of 3:16.28 and the women finished at 3:53.23.

WOMEN’S SCORES
1 WKU 179.33
2 Middle Tennessee 110
3 North Texas 104.33
4 Arkansas State 64
5 Troy 39.333333
6 Florida Atlantic 38.5
7 UL-Monroe 35
8 South Alabama 33
9 FIU 28
10 Arkansas-Little Rock 17
11 LOUISIANA 14.5

MEN’S SCORES
1 WKU 136
2 North Texas 98
3 LOUISIANA  92
4 Middle Tennessee 87
5 Arkansas State 72
6 South Alabama 69
7 UL-Monroe 65
8 Arkansas-Little Rock 29
9 FIU 14

INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Most Outstanding Female Track Athlete – Janet Jesang, WKU
Most Outstanding Female Field Athlete – Brittany Cox, Middle Tennessee
Most Outstanding Female Freshman – Ja-Courtney Alexander, Troy

Women’s Top Meet Scorer – Cherice Robertson, Middle Tennessee
Women’s Team Coach of the Year – Charlie Mahfouz, Louisiana

Most Outstanding Male Track Athlete – Keyth Talley, North Texas
Most Outstanding Male Field Athlete – Brian Soverns, WKU
Most Outstanding Male Freshman – Soloman Williams, Arkansas State
Men’s Top Meet Scorer – Festus Chemaoi, Middle Tennessee
Men’s Team Coach of the Year – Erik Jenkins, WKU