T&F: Avila Track earns All-Heart in record 14 events
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Avila track and field teams capped off their best outdoor regular season in program history by picking up a program record 14 All-Conference nods last weekend at the Heart of America Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships in Baldwin City, Kan.
Helen Thames and Jeremi Barnes led the charge, becoming the first female and first male track and field athletes in program history to win three titles at the Heart Championships. Thames earned first team honors by winning the 400m and the 400m Hurdles, and also helped the 4x400m relay team earn first team with a victory. The 4x400m relay team broke the all-time Heart record with a time of 3:54.73, while Thames broke the individual 400m conference record with a time of 55.13.
Barnes picked up first team honors in both of his individual events, winning the Triple Jump and the Long Jump at the Heart Championships. Barnes also helped the 4x100m relay team (Jeremi Barnes, Emil Ozoria, Ryan Mercer, Dyjwun Watson) earned a fifth place finish at the championships, good enough for an honorable mention.
Barnes and Thames will both be representing Avila at the NAIA Outdoor National Championships in each of their individual events, and the women's 4x400m relay team of Thames, Tenka Stringer, Murielle Mercier and Breonne Maltbia will also be making their first appearance at the national championships.
Josh Benford also picked up first team honors on the men's side, winning the High Jump for the Eagles. Emil Ozoria picked up third team honors for his third place finish in the Decathlon, and both he and Benford will also be heading to the national championships as they both hit the NAIA Qualifying standards.
Tenka Stringer was also earned three first team nods, winning the 800m and being a part of both the 4x400m and 4x800m relay teams. Stringer was joined by Drevon Carter, Murielle Mercier and Penny Fenn in the 4x800m team. Stringer just missed the NAIA "B" Standard in the 800m, so she will run in a last chance meet this weekend to try and earn a spot in the championship field.
Drevon Carter earned a third place finish in the 800m, giving her third team honors, while Penny Fenn also picked up third team honors with her third place finish in the 3,000m Steeplechase.
Lia McLoughlin, Shyrelle Yates and Kayvona Bragg each earned honorable mention honors for Avila at the Heart Championships, with McLoughlin finishing fourth in the Heptathlon, Yates finishing sixth in the Triple Jump and Bragg placing sixth in the Long Jump.
In all, seven different Eagles are scheduled to compete in seven different events at the NAIA Outdoor National Championships in Gulf Shores, Alabama, which is the most all-time in the program's short four year history. The national championships are set to begin May 24 and run through May 26. If Stringer can qualify for the 800m in the last chance meet, she will add the eighth event for the Eagles as she is already scheduled to run with the 4x400m team.
