A few breaks here and there and hardware would have returned back to Great Bend but overall it was another successful weekend for the Barton Community College track and field team competing at the NJCAA Indoor National Championships held this weekend at Washburn University's Indoor Facility in Topeka, Kansas.
The 2nd ranked women claimed five individual titles in compiling 83 points, falling just 1.5 points shy of the national runner-up Cloud County's 84.5 total and a mere .5 points from South Plains' third place total of 83.5 points. The Cougars were solidly in 4th place by thirty-five points over fifth place Iowa Western. New Mexico captured the title with 116 points.
Overall the Cougars had fifteen scoring performances and chalked up twenty personal best efforts in the two days.
Barton led the meet by three points after day one, earning twelve points in the meet's first event led by Ana Couto's national championship with a program and NJCAA second most 3945 points. Joined by Kayleigh Prentiss' 7th place finish, the duo set new personal bests in each of the events going into the final 800m with Prentiss going 5-for-5 in new personal bests while Couto fell a mere second in timing a new best.
Kelsie Murrell-Ross began the first of her two national championships on Friday, winning the shot put with Treneese Hamilton's best effort grabbing the second slot for the Cougars' 1-2 finish. Murrell-Ross, the program's record holder at 16.30m, came up shy of her best but won the meet with a third round 16.12m toss while Hamilton's season progression led to a 15.05m mark on her second throw to hold the second position and move up from the 8th to the 5th furthest throw in program history.
In Saturday's weight throw, Murrell-Ross avenged a 3rd place Region VI finish by leading a 1-5-8 Barton placing by nailing her fourth twirl-and-release with a program 4th best 18.30m to win the event by over five feet. For Hamilton she nailed a new personal best 15.89 on her first round throw of the first flight in placing 5th. Efe Latham, who owns the program 9th furthest mark, placed 8th on Saturday with a 15.72m throw.
Danae Nembhard gave the Cougars its lone national champion on the track in the 60m hurdles. In what turned out to be a rematch of the Region VI Championship two weeks ago as the duo broke the meet record, Miracle Thompson of Cloud County earned the title with a .005 second better lean. On Saturday, the duo went hurdle for hurdle again but this time it was Nembhard with the strong finish to grab the national crown with an 8.24 time as Thompson clocked an 8.25. For Nembhard, who fell just .02 seconds from setting the school record two weeks, Saturday's victory time broke Yoveinny Mota's 8.27 time set in 2020 and posted the NJCAA's 3rd fastest all-time clocking with Thompson etching her name into the nation's 4th fastest time.
Returning to the track after the men's hurdle, Nembhard got off to a good 60m start before pulling up with tightness halfway down the track to place 8th.
Fresh off becoming two-time indoor Region VI Champion performances, Naiya Morgan again battled the tough 200m and 400m races in close time proximity, placing 7th in each event beginning with shaving a second off her 400m prelim time for a 55.56 then reached deep for a 24.59 in the 200m finals after having clocked a 24.39 in Friday's prelims. Following the men's 200m and 1000m races, Morgan was back in the starting blocks to lead the 4x400 relay squad, clocking a first leg 56.79 to have the squad in a then-second place before slipping to 10th overall.
Brittania Ingram warmed up the jumping jacks on Friday with a personal best 5.76m 3rd place long jump national finish then returned on Saturday to add a triple jump national title on top of her region crown with another personal best effort of 12.50m to mark the program's 10th furthest and NJCAA 18th furthest effort. Kay-Lagay Clarke, who won the region long jump two weeks ago, placed 7th at 5.68m then capped her indoor jumping season with a personal best 12.12 in Saturday's triple to finish 4th.
The Cougars begin preparation for the outdoor season scheduled to begin March 17 at the two-day Texas Christian University Alumni Invite in Fort Worth, Texas, and Saturday's March 18 one-day Emporia State University's Spring Invitational.
Women Individual National Titles:
Pentathlon: Ana Couto (3945 points *2nd most program history **2nd most NJCAA history ***Also won Pentathlon Shot Put (PB 13.21m, 43-04.25))
60m Hurdles: Danae Nembhard (8.24 *Program Record; **3rd fastest NJCAA history)
Shot Put: Kelsie Murrell-Ross (16.12m, 52-10.75 *Already has program record and 3rd furthest NJCAA history 16.30m throw)
Triple Jump: Brittania Ingram (12.50m, 41-00.25 *10th furthest program history **18th NJCAA history)
Weight Throw: Kelsie Murrell-Ross (18.30m, 60-00.50 *4th furthest program history **16th NJCAA history)
Barton's NJCAA Indoor Championship Results (Complete Results) (PR/PB = Personal record/best)
60m: 8th Danae Nembhard (8.11 *7.53 in prelims), 18th Antiana Walsh (7.73)
60m Hurdles: CHAMPION Danae Nembhard (PB 8.24 *8.37 in prelims **Program Record; ***3rd fastest NJCAA history), 9TH Kay-Lagay Clarke (8.75), FS Ana Couto
200m: 7th Naiya Morgan (24.59 *24.39 in prelims), 12th Antiana Walsh (PB 24.82)
400m: 7th Naiya Morgan (55.56 *56.61 in prelims), DNF Dy'Mond Wiley (56.44 in prelims)
4x400m Relay: 10th 3:59.56 (Naiya Morgan, Antiana Walsh, Kay-Lagay Clarke, Brittania Ingram)
Long Jump: 3rd Brittania Ingram (PB 5.76m, 18-10.75), 7th Kay-Lagay Clarke (5.68m, 18-07.752), 12th Jazmine Williamson (5.23m, 17-02.00)
Weight Throw: 3rd CHAMPION Kelsie Murrell-Ross (PB 18.30m, 60-00.504th furthest program history **16th NJCAA history), 5th Treneese Hamilton (PB 15.89m, 52-01.75), 8th Efe Latham (15.72m, 51-07.00)
Shot Put: CHAMPION Kelsie Murrell-Ross (16.12m, 52-10.75), 2nd Treneese Hamilton (PB 15.05m, 49-04.50 *6th program best), 12th Ana Couto (12.14m, 39-10.00)
Triple Jump: CHAMPION Brittania Ingram (PB 12.50m, 41-00.25 *10th furthest program history **18th NJCAA history)), 4th Kay-Lagay Clarke (PB 12.12m, 39-09.25), 11th Ahniesha Presulme (PB 11.32m, 37-01.75)
High Jump: CHAMPION 10th Jazmine Williamson (1.61m, 5-03.25), 14th Kayleigh Prentiss (1.56m, 5-01.25)
Pentathlon:
CHAMPION Ana Couto (3945 points *2nd best Program **2nd best NJCAA All-Time)
- 2nd in 60m Hurdles (PB 8.67, 980 points)
- 3rd in High Jump (PB 1.60m, 736 points)
- 1st in Shot Put (PB 13.21m, 741 points)
- 3rd in Long Jump (PB 5.67m, 750 points)
- 2nd in 800m (2:26.46, 738 points)
7th Kayleigh Prentiss (3298 points)
- 3rd in 60m Hurdles (PB 9.01, 908 points)
- 2nd in High Jump (PB 1.66m, 806 points)
- 8th in Shot Put (PB 9.37m, 488 points)
- 7th in Long Jump (PB 5.19m, 712 points)
- 12th in 800m (PB 2:48.04, 484 points)