Improving Cougars with strong showing at K.T. Woodman Classic

Competing in their second straight in-state meet, the Barton Community College men's track and field team competed this past weekend at the 67th annual K.T. Woodman Classic hosted by Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas.  The Cougars posted eleven personal best performances and five national qualifying performances while competing against fellow NJCAA members and four-year colleges and universities.

Quick Stukes led four strong performances in the 400m as the Cougars had four within the top seventeen runners.  Stukes placed sixth with a personal best and national qualifying time of 48.14 with Anthony Adderly coming in 12th at 48.82 while Micah Carey set a new personal standard at 48.88 placing 14th.  Competing in the event for the first time this season, Deandre Henderson's 49.56 was good for 17th place.

Alexander Richemond led four Barton entries in the 100m finishing seventh with a 10.59 while Shadrack Adu-Gyamfi was two spots behind qualifying for nationals with a personal best 10.62.  Marquee Montgomery crossed in 20th at 10.75 while Ashawn Bryan's personal best 11.28 placed 51st.    Montgomery led the Cougars in the 200m with a 22.02 21st placing while Bryan just missed a personal best by .01 in finishing 66th in 23.43.

Led by Sampson Laari's fourth place national qualifying and school seventh best time of 3:52.55, the Cougars also got personal best efforts from three others.  Elder Colindres took off seven seconds to finish in 30th at 4:05.29, Tyler Thornton shaved off thirteen seconds in a 4:09.49 41st place finish, and Kole Stiner took fifteen seconds off his best crossing in 4:28.56 to place 74th.   Anthony Forrest also had a personal best 1:57.62 taking tenth place in the 800m.

Running the 5000m for the first time, Marcus Pastran crossed in 16:47.72 to finish 53rd.

In the hurdles the Cougars got two top ten finishes led by the 110m Hurdle second place finish of Deron Gordon in 14.36 just .02 off his personal best but still well within a national qualifying time.  Zodani Francois bettered his national qualifying time with a personal best 54.65 to finish seventh in the 400m Hurdles.  

Barton had two entries in the 3000m Steeplechase led by the second place finish of Devyn Brotherton.  Exceeding his personal best by fourteen seconds, Brotherton improved his national qualifying time to 9:24.42 while Brady Holler finished 15th in 10:59.23.

In the field events, Colby Overturf placed 15th in Javelin with a throw of 52.69m (172-10.00) while Tyler Jordan finished 17th in the Hammer Throw at 39.19m (128-07.00).

The Cougars will head to Norman, Oklahoma, next weekend beginning competition on Friday in the 46th Annual John Jacobs Invitational hosted by the University of Oklahoma.