FORT WORTH, Texas -- John Brown University track and field made an impressive showing on the second day of the Sooner Athletic Conference Championships at Karen Cramer Stadium on Friday (April 25), highlighted by three conference titles and eleven top-10 program performances.
The Golden Eagles women sit in third place with 57 points, just eight points behind leader Nelson (Texas). The men currently hold seventh place with 29 points.
Senior Evie Scoles and freshman Sam Burkett led JBU with individual conference titles. Scoles claimed the women's hammer throw with a mark of 40.48 meters (132 feet, 10 inches), setting a new program record. She also placed fifth in the discus throw at 35.01 meters (114 feet, 10 inches), the third-best mark in program history. Burkett delivered a championship performance in his first conference meet, winning the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase in 9:57.38.
Senior Grace Mitchell joined the list of conference champions, clearing 3.10 meters (10 feet, 2 inches) in the women's pole vault for her third consecutive outdoor conference title. The clearance ties for the third-best mark in program history.
In the relays, the women's 800-meter relay team of senior Mikey Duncan, freshman Tori Calder, freshman Camryn Chaffin, and senior Anna Keys finished second with a time of 9:56.83, the second-fastest time in program history. The men's 800-meter relay squad of sophomore Henry Zedler, junior Hayden Landers, freshman Gabriel Pelkey, and Burkett posted a time of 8:04.90 to place fifth, recording the fourth-fastest mark in program history.
Keys also impressed individually in the 1,500 meters, placing second with a time of 4:46.94, the fifth-best performance in program history. Duncan finished ninth in the same event at 5:12.71, while senior Emma Brown rounded out the top 10 with a time of 5:14.88. Calder ran 5:21.23 to place 12th.
In the distance events, senior Olivia Scates and junior Hope Ahnfeldt placed third and fourth in the women's 10,000 meters with times of 44:13.30 and 44:13.49, respectively. Senior Josiah Petak finished fourth in the men's 10,000 meters at 33:47.32, the sixth-fastest time in program history, followed closely by freshman Joshua Freeman in fifth at 34:27.80, which ranks ninth in program history.
Junior Naia Shepherd placed fourth in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase, clocking 14:12.70, the fourth-best time in program history.
In the sprints, sophomore Emma Morton ran 1:02.46 in the women's 400 meters to place ninth, while junior Nikki Basye finished eighth in the women's 100-meter hurdles with a time of 18.92 seconds. Senior Drew Janzen posted a time of 51.81 in the men's 400 meters, ranking ninth in program history.
Junior Matthew Cook led the men's middle distance performances with a sixth-place finish in the 1,500 meters, posting a time of 4:04.28, the ninth-fastest mark in program history.
In the men's field events, sophomore Chase Stone reached 6.72 meters (22 feet, 0.5 inches) in the long jump for seventh place, while freshman Eli Leach cleared 3.26 meters (10 feet, 8.25 inches) in the pole vault to place eighth.
The Golden Eagles will return to Karen Cramer Stadium on Saturday (April 26) for the final day of the conference championships.
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