4th ranked Barton women's track and field wins seven events for runner-up Region 6 finish; Riddle and Smith compile historic achievements #GoBarton
4th ranked Barton women’s track and field wins seven events for runner-up Region 6 finish; Riddle and Smith compile historic achievements.
<Photos courtesy of Ed Bailey Photography>
The 4th ranked Barton Community College women's track and field team won seven events over the weekend towards a runner-up finish at the KJCCC/Region 6 Indoor Championships.
The Cougars' small but talented group compiled 138.5 points, powered by 20 scoring performances in two days of competition at Pittsburg State University's Robert W. Plaster Center. Barton's total fell shy of Cloud County's 175.5 points but comfortably ahead of Hutchinson's third place 85 point total.
Barton concludes the indoor season in a couple of weeks competing at the 2025 NJCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships held March 7-8 at Texas Tech University's Sports Performance Center in Lubbock, Texas.
A pair of individual hardware were handed out to the Cougars during post-meet awards, Emmanuel Dixon named the Women's Assistant Coach of the Year and freshman Celine Riddle earning the Women's Field Athlete of the Meet. 
Riddle helped carry on the tradition of Barton's region dominance of the runway jumps by winning both the long and triple jump events to join Nia Robinson's 2022 feat as the last Cougar to win both.
In Saturday's long jump, Riddle's personal best 5.80m (19-00.25) edged out defending champion Chloe Perryman's 5.67m (18-7.25) in registering the second straight year the Cougars finished in the top two spots. The accomplishment also marked the fourth straight and fifth-of-the-last-six region championship meets that Barton stood on top of the medal stand. Previous winners were: Chloe Perryman ('24), Kay-Lagay Clarke ('23), Nia Robinson ('22), and Shemia Odane ('20).
On Sunday the Cougars again went 1-2 in the triple jump, Riddle winning Barton's 6th straight region title by marking an 11.78m (38-7.75) jump, just 1.5 inches ahead of fellow freshman Kymia Bridgett's personal best 11.74 (38-6.25). Previous winners were: Kay-Lagay Clarke ('24), Brittania Ingram ('23), Nia Robinson ('22), and Annia Ashley's consecutive titles ('21 and '20).
Additionally making historic news was sophomore Keliza Smith with a pair of program best Top-10 performances. Smith's first move on the all-time chart came in defending her region 60m crown by clocking an event winning 7.31 time in moving up a spot to 8th fastest in program history.
Two hours later, Smith took on the 400m field for just the second time in her collegiate career and first attempt in over a year, beating the field by over a second to break Barton legend Inez Turner's 33-year Region 6 meet record set in 1992 by clocking a program 3rd fastest time of 53.77 which also jumps to the top of the current season nation's leaderboard.
The Cougars earned their first of seven individual championships in Saturday's first event of the pentathlon. Finishing 2nd in the 60m hurdles (9.45) followed by a third place in the high jump (1.50m), Alexia Walker took over the top spot in the third event by winning the ensuing shot put (9.93m). The freshman then grew her lead winning both the long jump (4.95m) and the finale 800m grueling run (2:30.98) for a 126 point victory compiling 3191 points in capturing the Cougars' second multi-event region title in the past three seasons. Walker returned Sunday to earn the team another 5.5 points rising to a 3rd place tie in the high jump on a new personal best 1.52m height.
Joining Walker and Riddle's titles on Saturday, Cedricka Williams distanced the weight throw field by over five feet. Previously marking a program 7th best throw earlier this season, Williams' win on Saturday was just eight inches shy of her best in marking a trio of over 56-feet throws with the winning distance recorded at 17.20m (56-5.00).
Fellow thrower Zadie Mackey placed 6th in the event on a personal best 14.46m (47-05.00) mark then followed on Sunday with a 4th place in the shot put at 12.28m (47-05.00) mark.
Giving Barton its second consecutive 60m hurdle region title, freshman Asharria Ulett bettered her nation's top time by clocking an 8.37 twice, the first coming in prelims followed by Sunday's winning performance. Fellow freshman Ty'yanah Adams also clocked a new best with a third place 8.68 time in earning an additional six team points.
Additional runner-up placings came from Kialia Claiborne's personal best 600m time of 1:37.03 and the 4x400m relay team of Narissa McPherson, Shone Walters, Claiborne, and Natasha Fox crossing just .05 of a second shy of a title. Still the nation's top ranked squad nearly a second faster, the Cougars' clocked a 3:45.30 time on Sunday in the meet's final event.
Barton's Region 6 Indoor Championship Results (Complete Results) (PR/PB = Personal record/best; NQ = Nationally Qualified; ANQ = Already Nationally Qualified)
Pentathlon: CHAMPION Alexia Walker (NQ 3191 points *1st Time in event)
2nd 60m Hurdles (9.45 – 818pts), 3rd High Jump (1.50m – 621pts *1st Time in event), 1st Shot Put (PB 9.93m – 525pts *1st Time in event), 1st Long Jump (4.95m – 546pts *1st Time in event), 1st 800m (PB 2:30.98 – 681pts)
60m: 2-Time CHAMPION Keliza Smith (PB ANQ 7.31 *Moves from 9th to 8th Program best), 8th Kayda Austin (ANQ 7.69 *PB 7.60 in prelims), 17th Takeila Williams (T-PB 7.81)
60m Hurdles: CHAMPION Asharria Ulett (PB ANQ 8.37 *Also 8.37 in prelims *Top time in nation), 3rd Ty'yanah Adams (PB ANQ 8.68), 19th Alexia Walker (11.83)
200m: 4th Kayda Austin (ANQ 24.57 *24.43 in prelims), 15th Kennidra Spigner (PB 25.23)
400m: CHAMPION Keliza Smith (PB NQ 53.77 *3rd Program best **Top time in nation), 4th Natasha Fox (ANQ 56.06), 7th Shone Walters (NQ 56.81 *1st Time in event)
600m: Runner-Up Kialia Claiborne (PB ANQ 1:37.03 *Already NQ via 600y)
800m: 9th Narissa McPherson (2:28.23 *1st Time in event), 10th Alissandra Jackson (2:28.63 *Missed PB by .04 of a second)
5000m: 9th Lakota Schultz (20:08.93 *1st Time in event)
Long Jump: CHAMPION Celine Riddle (PB ANQ 5.80m, 19-00.25), Runner-Up Chloe Perryman (ANQ 5.67m, 18-7.25), 5th Kymia Bridgett (5.31m, 17-5.00)
Triple Jump: CHAMPION Celine Riddle (ANQ 11.78m, 38-7.75), Runner-Up Kymia Bridgett (PB ANQ 11.74, 38-6.25)
High Jump: 3rd Alexia Walker (PB 1.52m, 4-11.75)
Shot Put: 4th Zadie Mackey (ANQ 12.28m, 40-3.50), DNP ANQ Cedricka Williams (Foul)
Weight Throw: CHAMPION Cedricka Williams (ANQ 17.20m, 56-05.00), 6th Zadie Mackey (PB 14.46m, 47-05.00)
4x400m Relay: Runner-Up 3:45.30 *ANQ on nation's top time (Narissa McPherson, Shone Walters, Kialia Claiborne, Natasha Fox)